Family
by cojack
Summary: C/7. AU where the phase variance in the Quantum Slipstream drive is corrected by Seven and the crew of Voyager returns to Earth in the episode "Timeless". They return to an Alpha Quadrant in turmoil.
1. Teaser

DISCLAIMER: It's Paramount's galaxy.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: C/7. AU where the phase variance in the Quantum Slipstream drive is corrected by Seven and the crew of _Voyager_ returns to Earth in the episode "Timeless". They return to an Alpha Quadrant in turmoil.

#

FAMILY

#

Stardate 52143.6

B'Elanna Torres was annoyed. A not all that uncommon occurrence, Seven of Nine observed, but in the current circumstances she had good reason. Torres moved across Engineering looking at a PADD that contained the source of her frustration. Most of the senior staff was assembled, the modified warp core humming quietly in the background. "That can't be right," Torres snapped. "We tested this engine molecule by molecule."

Tom Paris shrugged and replied "I'm sorry, B'Elanna." Paris' smugness didn't please the Chief Engineer one bit and she appeared ready to throttle him. In fact, no one in the assembled party was pleased.

Seven of Nine had been listening in on the conversation at the periphery of the group from the start. Although she had been aboard _Voyager_ now for just over a year, she was still reluctant to engage in conversation with the crew unless absolutely necessary. Earlier in the day she had unintentionally become intoxicated at the gathering celebrating the completion of the Quantum Slipstream drive, and this made her all the more reticent. The memory of the incident was unfortunate. She considered the Doctor a mentor, helping her to improve her social skills, but his apparent joy during her indisposition was intolerable. She would prefer to remain silent now, but the Quantum Slipstream project had consumed a significant amount of her time and their scarce resources. Perhaps the situation would benefit from a new set of eyes. "I wish to examine the results of the simulation," she interjected.

Paris turned to her and threw up his hands. "Holodeck two. Run them for yourself. That is, if you don't mind being vaporized a few dozen times." Paris did have a knack for the dramatic, although it accomplished little in ameliorating the problem at hand.

"I looked at their findings Captain," Commander Chakotay put in. "If we try to take that flight in the morning, we'll be in escape pods by afternoon." Seven of Nine turned to study the First Officer. In the past few months, although he shared in the excitement, he had always remained cautious and reigned in the crew's expectations so they didn't get out of hand. It appeared his intuition had been correct. She perhaps knew Commander Chakotay best of all the crew, having shared a brief mental link with him when she was first severed from the Borg. Despite his reservations about her being aboard, which she knew intimately and fully understood, he always treated her fairly and she knew he was honorable and even-handed. There was much to admire about the man, Seven of Nine mused.

"It would appear we have no choice but to cancel it," Lieutenant Commander Tuvok added matter-of-factly.

"Either that or…" Paris glanced at Harry Kim who was standing behind an engineering console on the other side of the group from Seven of Nine. Kim seemed distracted. After a pause, Paris moved towards Kim and finished, "we can try it Harry's way."

Captain Janeway stopped studying the pulsations of the warp core and looked up with interest. "Ensign?" she asked and everyone turned to Ensign Kim.

Kim seemed startled to suddenly be the center of attention, but didn't miss a beat. "I've got an idea," he began slowly walking out from behind the console. "It's tricky, but I think it could work. The trouble begins about seventeen seconds into the flight. The phase variance kicks in and the Slipstream becomes unstable. What we need is someone in a shuttle to ride the rapids in front of _Voyager_."

"Yes!" Torres picked up on this suggestion and nodded enthusiastically. "They could map the threshold of the Slipstream as it's forming and send the phase corrections back to us. That is a great idea, Harry."

Kim appeared to gain confidence. "Now, here's the tricky part. The shuttle will only be a couple of seconds ahead of _Voyager_. That doesn't give auto-navigation much time to compensate."

Janeway turned to Paris. "Tom?"

"Couple of seconds?" Paris seemed both skeptical and optimistic, a curious combination of emotions. His meaning was not at all clear. As Seven of Nine considered, there would be no margin for error. Any mistake in Slipstream could prove disastrous.

"We can do this, Captain," Kim said emphatically, his hesitance from just moments before now gone. "Put me on that shuttle. I'll get _Voyager_ through the Slipstream. What choice do we have? Take the drive offline? Months of work for nothing?"

"We built a highly experimental piece of technology," Tuvok countered. "There were bound to be setbacks." Trust it to Tuvok to interject the voice of reason.

Kim, however, would have none of it. "The benamite crystals at the heart of this engine have already started to decay. It could take years to synthesize more. I don't know about the rest of you, but I didn't do all this work just to be stopped by a point four two phase variance. No offense, Captain."

Janeway waved her hand. "None taken," she said. "All right, Mister Kim. You've convinced me. Prepare a flight plan and have it on my desk within the hour."

"Yes, ma'am."

"I'll let you know what I decide."

As the senior staff broke up and left Engineering, Seven of Nine paused. A point four two phase variance in Slipstream could be devastating, regardless of Ensign Kim's enthusiasm. She frowned ever so slightly and then turned on her heel to go to Holodeck Two and examine Mister Paris' findings for herself.

#

Janeway sat down in the Captain's chair and engaged ship wide communications. "All hands, this is the Captain. Take your stations, secure all systems, and stand by for the jump to Slipstream."

Seven of Nine glanced down at her control panel. It was her job to monitor sensors and the possible occurrence of phase variances and the Slipstream threshold. She would be in direct link with the _Delta Flyer_ and could enter the corrections they anticipated needing if Paris was unable to make the correction himself. "I've established a telemetry link with the shuttle," she commented dispassionately.

"Match their course and speed," Janeway responded, directing her comment to Tom Paris at the helm. She then adjusted the communicator. " _Voyager_ to Chakotay."

" _Yes, ma'am_ ," Chakotay replied over the comm.

"Prepare to enter the Slipstream."

" _Acknowledged_."

Janeway paused for only a moment gazing towards the main view screen. "Engage."

Tom Paris adjusted controls on his panel. "Slipstream velocity in four, three, two."

As they approached the Slipstream threshold, there was turbulence, but this was expected. Down in Engineering, the Slipstream Drive powered the Quantum Matrix and moved both _Voyager_ and the _Delta Flyer_ past the threshold and into Slipstream. Not warped space, and not quite trans-warp space, the Slipstream established a conduit between the various higher dimensions. The turbulence quieted immediately.

It didn't take long for the phase variance within the Quantum Matrix to develop. Seven of Nine could see it clearly enough, similar to Paris' original and modified holodeck simulations. "I'm detecting a phase variance. Point one, point two," she said. Inertial dampers weren't keeping up with the gravimetric instability, and the ship began to shake.

"Helm?"

"Still waiting for Harry," Paris replied nervously.

"Point three," Seven of Nine commented.

" _Voyager_ to _Delta Flyer_ ," Janeway said forcefully. "We need those corrections or we'll have to shut down the drive."

" _We're on it Captain_ ," Kim replied over the comm, although he sounded nervous.

There was an agonizing few seconds delay, and then the corrections arrived. Seven of Nine could see Kim's calculations just as Paris said "I'm receiving the phase corrections."

The Slipstream responded immediately. "The phase variance is decreasing," Seven said, but frowned slightly. The correction was improving as predicted. She had seen the same results in the simulations, but something still nagged at her. Even then, when the corrections were added according to Kim's calculations, it was still slightly off. Not enough to jeopardize the integrity of the Slipstream, but still present. And then a thought occurred to her in a flash of insight. Kim's corrections were exactly what was needed for the Slipstream threshold at the location of the _Delta Flyer_ , but during the two point three second delay between the shuttle and _Voyager_ , might a slight adjustment to the threshold still be necessary? The deviation would be miniscule, but could it be enough to account for the deviation Seven had seen even in the modified simulations. And if uncorrected, could it be enough to destabilize the threshold? The modified simulations on the holodeck seemed to indicate otherwise, but simulations are not exact replications of the truth. Were the actual dynamics nonlinear enough?

"Shields are holding," Tuvok commented from his station at tactical.

Janeway nodded approvingly. "Looks like we're on our way," she said with a smile.

Seven of Nine studied the readings, still unsettled. Should she mention her concerns? Everything appeared to be going as planned, but… As with the modified simulations, it was clear to her the rate of change in the phase variance was increasing and would likely overshoot, but it wasn't exactly as it had been on the holodeck. She had a link to the Slipstream and could adjust the drive ever so slightly and that should stabilize the correction without Paris having to do anything. Should she… Without another thought, in a split second decision, she made the change to the Quantum Matrix. It would be unnoticeable, except perhaps to someone down in Engineering if they happened to be looking at the correct display. It was so minor, perhaps it was unnecessary anyway.

The phase variance did overshoot slightly, but then stabilized for a time at a low level. The tunnel-like swirl of colors inside the Slipstream undulated outside and the threshold remained steady. _Voyager_ and the shuttlecraft slipped through the higher dimensions of space-time making their way to the Alpha Quadrant.

Two more corrections were required. For each, Kim relayed the corrections from the _Delta Flyer_ to _Voyager_ , Paris made the necessary adjustments to _Voyager_ 's path through Slipstream as previously rehearsed, and Seven of Nine made her unseen adjustment to the Quantum Matrix. With each adjustment, Seven of Nine became more and more unsure if her contribution was even necessary, but it was clearly not making things worse. In just a matter of twenty-seven minutes, they neared their exit point into real space and the Alpha Quadrant.

"Prepare to exit Slipstream," Captain Janeway announced. "Let's put in well outside Jupiter's orbit. We don't want to create too much of a stir."

"Yes ma'am," Paris replied. Seconds later, the circular swirl of color from within the Slipstream was replaced by an innocuous star field on the main view screen. They had done it. For it wasn't just any old star field. It was the stars as seen of Earth, Sector zero-zero-one. They were back in the Alpha Quadrant.

"It appears our chronometer is off," Tuvok commented. He studied the tactical sensors more closely. "According to the Jupiter beacon, we've lost several months in Slipstream."

"Explain," Janeway asked, turning to face Tuvok.

"While twenty-seven minutes transpired for us here on _Voyager_ , over two hundred and sixty seven days elapsed for the Galaxy as a whole."

Janeway frowned.

"An artifact of Slipstream travel perhaps?" Paris speculated. "Without a warp field, we weren't shielded from all the relativistic effects?"

Janeway shook her head and faced forward once more. "It makes little difference," she finally said, "synchronize ship's time to the Jupiter beacon." She then opened a comm channel to the _Delta Flyer_. "Harry, you did it. Congratulations and well done!"

" _Thank you Captain_."

"And now Commander, get the _Delta Flyer_ back into the shuttle bay and let's head to Earth. We are long overdue."

" _Yes Captain_." Chakotay replied and the channel was terminated.

And then over ship wide communications. "All hands… we're home." Janeway's voice cracked with emotion, suddenly overcome by the realization of what they had all just accomplished.

Seven of Nine glanced down at sensors. The _Delta Flyer_ was nearby and already on final approach to the shuttle bay. Beyond was Earth system and the heart of Federation space. In just a few moments, they would be in contact with Star Fleet Command and in orbit.

She felt disconcertingly anxious. It was an emotion she was unfamiliar with and that fact only heightened the feeling.

Her integration into this crew on _Voyager_ had been slow and wasn't nearly complete. She was still learning what it was to be an individual. What it was to be human. Now, she was an expatriated drone cast into a greater pool of individuals in a Federation who were fearful and hostile towards the Borg.

What was going to happen to her?

#

Author's note: Just a teaser for now. Given my other stories, however, I think you might guess at least one thing that is going to happen to her… I plan this to be similar in length to my previous C/7 AU stories. Hope you enjoy and please review.


	2. Welcome to Earth

Chapter 2 – Welcome to Earth

Chakotay stared idly out the window towards San Francisco Bay and the Golden Gate Bridge. To the west, the sun was behind clouds that hung over the Pacific and colored the clouds' edges as it neared the horizon. He sat at a booth in a small café, having just finished a light dinner. The place was nearly empty. All of San Francisco, or at least what little he had seen of it, seemed the same way. As it happened, _Voyager_ and her crew had stumbled back to the Alpha Quadrant only to find the quadrant still embroiled in the war with The Dominion. They had learned of the war during their brief contact with Star Fleet using the Hirogen's sensor array. It had been a rough two years for the Federation but things were beginning to look better with both the Klingons and Romulans joining forces against the Dominion alliance. Starfleet, Earth, and the Federation were all on edge and it felt as if everyone was holding their breath, cautiously optimistic.

Chakotay sighed heavily. He had been up for forty-two hours straight. The welcome, the meetings, the debriefings. Starfleet Headquarters was located a short walk away and this meal was the first chance he had time by himself since arriving on Earth. Actually, he wasn't quite alone. A special agent from Star Fleet Security sat in a nearby booth still eating. Alex was his first name. Chakotay didn't know his last name and decided not to ask since it was never offered. Alex had been shadowing him the past hour since he left Star Fleet Headquarters after the debriefings. Chakotay had been told to expect an escort and that it was for his own safety. With tensions high and things as they were in the Federation, Star Fleet was taking no chances with creating a confrontation. There were some who still blamed the Maquis for escalating tensions with the Cardassians.

At least they weren't being detained. The debriefing had been long and intense, although perhaps it would be more appropriate to call it an interrogation? Neither seemed right. One too kind, but not as bad as the other implied. He had spoken to some of the others and it was the same all around. Even Kathryn felt uneasy. Kathryn… It was just forty eight hours before when they shared a late dinner in her quarters. Her grandmother's vegetable biryani. They had spoken of risks and her decision to go with Harry's plan. 'Are you with me?' she had asked, and he had replied, 'Always.' In the back of his mind, there was a vague notion of being close with Kathryn when they finally got home. At the time, it was always far off. Now that it was here… He didn't know what to think. There were so many other things to think about. So many other obligations. Perhaps there were some barriers that would never be crossed. And with this war…

He didn't blame Star Fleet for the interrogations. The war had inflicted a great toll on the Federation. Recent successes were tempered by uncertainty and they were grasping at anything and everything. The Quantum Slipstream technology, the Borg enhanced shields and sensors. As it turned out, _Voyager_ might have a lot to offer. And with what happened to the Maquis…

Chakotay cringed and clenched his fists. It was still an open wound. He knew of it, or course, but it seemed more real now. The slaughter of the Maquis by the Dominion. All the friends he had left behind. Nearly all of them…

He shook his head to clear the thought out of his mind. Of course not all of his Maquis friends. He had to now think of those who remained. Those of the Maquis who had returned with him on _Voyager_. That had to be his priority now. He would start in the morning, however, for he was exhausted and needed sleep. Alex seemed to be finishing up and could escort him to the apartment assigned to him which was nearby. _Voyager_ was now off limits to everyone, including Kathryn and the rest of the Star Fleet personnel. Funny how he and Alex hadn't eaten together, but Chakotay was in no mood to talk and perhaps Alex had sensed that. Yes. In the morning he would start reassembling the _Val Jean_ crew and figure out what they were going to do next. Would some rejoin Star Fleet to fight the Dominion? Would he?

Chakotay was pushing himself back from the table when his comm badge chirped. He might not be in Star Fleet, but they still wanted to keep him on call and so had issued him a communicator.

" _Star Fleet Security to Commander Chakotay_."

Chakotay eyed Alex in the booth near him before responding. Alex shrugged, indicating he didn't know what the call was about either. Interesting that whoever it was who was calling had included his Star Fleet rank.

"Chakotay here."

There was a pause. " _Ah… sir, this is Chief Reynolds at the Presidio Detention Center. Could you please report here at once and take over responsibility for one of your crewmembers who was involved in an incident_."

Chakotay sighed heavily, imagining one of the Maquis causing a problem. Cathal came to mind immediately. He was none too happy when last he saw him. Cathal's brother Liam was on Earth and they learned from him of the death of Cathal's parents and destruction of their colony by the Cardassians soon after the Maquis were eliminated. It was a piece of information not contained in Star Fleet's messages to _Voyager_. Their colony had been near the Demilitarized Zone, although well inside Federation space. Chakotay knew exactly how Cathal felt. Helpless and impotent. Despite the happiness of finally making it home, the reality of the Universe was unavoidable, and the anger that went along with it. "Which one of the Maquis is it?" Chakotay asked.

There was hesitation. " _Not Maquis sir_."

Chakotay was confused. Why was Reynolds calling him? "If it's someone else from _Voyager_ , Captain Janeway or another Star Fleet officer would be more appropriate. My official status with Star Fleet is still in limbo Chief."

" _Captain Janeway is still in meetings at Headquarters and is not available."_

"Then someone else," Chakotay repeated impatiently. "Commander Tuvok, Lieutenant Rollins. Hell, even Ensign Kim would work." Besides, Star Fleet could take care of themselves now. He was more concerned with getting the _Val Jean_ crew organized.

 _"All other Voyager officers are also not available_."

Chakotay frowned. Where the hell was everyone? He glanced over to Alex who was now looking at him with a questioning look. "I'll be right there Chief. I don't think there's anything I can legally do, but I'll bring someone from Star Fleet Security who might be able to stand in to take charge of another Star Fleet member."

Again there was a pause. " _The, ah, person in question is not in Star Fleet. We're actually not quite sure what to do with her_." Chakotay suddenly heard the nervousness and trepidation in Chief Reynold's voice. Who was he talking about? And then it occurred to him… Seven of Nine was at the detention center.

Chakotay frowned again and felt bad he hesitated in the first place. He had almost forgotten about Seven. Maquis, Star Fleet or not, he still had a responsibility to his crewmates. To his friends. They had grown into an extended family aboard _Voyager_ during the nearly five years they had been in the Delta Quadrant. He nodded slowly and moved to the door of the café. Alex stood quickly to join him. "I'll be right there," he finally responded and closed the comm link.

"Where we headed?" Alex asked, a step behind.

"Presidio," Chakotay replied. "The detention center there. Someone from _Voyager_."

Alex didn't reply, but kept a few steps behind. It wasn't a long walk up to the Presidio, and in about ten minutes, they arrived at the detention center.

"I'll wait for you here," Alex said at the entrance.

Chakotay was about to protest, but shrugged and went in alone. The detention center was much like a ship's brig, sterile and uninviting. The room was empty with a single door leading to the cells and glowing with an active force field. Chief Reynolds was behind a small desk and stood when Chakotay neared. "I appreciate you coming sir."

Chakotay looked about, but Seven of Nine wasn't there. "Where's Seven?" he asked.

Reynolds shifted nervously. "I have her in a holding cell," he said. He turned suddenly, apparently to avoid having to explain further, and moved towards a closed door. The force field deactivated. "Right this way." The door opened and the two of them stepped through.

There were ten cells in all. All were empty and dark except the furthest one from the door. Seven stood in the last one glaring at the two of them. Chakotay glanced back at the other cells. "Chief, where are the others who were involved in the incident you spoke of?"

"They were released earlier to their commanding officer," Reynolds replied.

Chakotay was about to ask Reynolds to describe the details of the incident, but decided he'd rather hear what happened directly from Seven. "Deactivate the force field. I'd like to speak to Seven alone."

Reynolds hesitated for a moment, but then moved forward and entered a code on the panel by the cell opening. The force field deactivated. He nodded to Chakotay, and then moved swiftly down the hall and back out into the entryway to the detention area. Chakotay heard the door lock and the force field activate behind him.

"Thank you for coming Commander," Seven said quietly. She appeared less aggressive now that Chief Reynolds was gone.

"Not a problem," Chakotay replied absently. Inside the cell there was a small table and two chairs. Chakotay was tired and moved over and sat down in one of them and motioned for Seven to sit down in the other. "The _Voyager_ family needs to stick together," he said, remembering his thoughts on the way over. "Now tell me what happened."

Seven frowned noticeably. "I am in no way related to you or anyone from _Voyager_ ," she retorted.

"A figure of speech," Chakotay said. Seven did sometimes take things too literal. "Meant to convey a closeness more substantial than just being friends and colleagues."

Seven seemed to consider this for a moment. "Words lose their meaning if used incorrectly," she commented and then moved forward to take her seat across the small table from Chakotay.

"As long as the original meaning remains intact," Chakotay responded, "I think we can allow for some leeway. Now tell me what happened."

Seven paused and gathered her thoughts. "After my interrogation at Star Fleet Headquarters, I was walking to the address assigned to me and was attacked by five men. They called Star Fleet Security and we were all brought here and detained."

Chakotay waited, but nothing more was offered. "Do you know who these five men were?" he asked.

"Not at the time," Seven replied. "I later learned they were junior officers from the starship _Excelsior_ which is currently in orbit."

Again Chakotay waited for more information, but Seven remained silent. Something clearly simmered under the surface. "Was it your escort who called Star Fleet Security?"

"I did not have an escort, or if I did, they did not make themselves known or aide me in any way. After I incapacitated three of the assailants, the remaining two called Security."

"No escort?" Chakotay replied in shock. If they were escorting the Maquis about for safety, surely they would have thought to provide the same for an ex-Borg drone. He would think that would be an even greater priority given the fact that the Maquis were all but exterminated.

"I showed great restraint," Seven offered.

"What started the confrontation?"

"I believe they were intoxicated," Seven replied. "They asked about my ocular implant and discovered I was Borg. This appeared to upset them greatly and two of them began to threaten me. They accused me of all sorts of horrors and atrocities."

"You are not Borg," Chakotay interrupted. For some reason, he felt compelled to remind her of that.

"It mattered little to them," Seven replied evenly. She then frowned and her eyes blazed. "Given Earth's history, the vitriol hatred of the Borg they displayed struck me as ironic. The World Wars, the genocides, the killing of infants in their mother's womb while much of the human population ignored the murder of millions. The blatant hypocrisy. The Borg may assimilate, but humans exterminate." There was venom in her voice. It had been a long time since Chakotay had heard Seven talk in this way. It reminded him of the first few weeks she was aboard _Voyager_. 'I will betray you,' she had said then with much the same tone. He had taken her at her word and was never as comfortable as Kathryn was with her aboard. As it turned out, she had instead grown to become an exemplary member of the crew. In fact, without her, the Quantum Slipstream drive would never have been built and _Voyager_ would still be in the Delta Quadrant.

"We've learned from past mistakes," Chakotay offered.

"Apparently not everyone," Seven countered. "Prejudice and ignorance and hypocrisy are still rampant among humans by my estimation. Those who profess tolerance are often the most intolerant. I ignored them and attempted to go on my way, and then the encounter became violent." She stopped and looked away. "I showed great restraint," she repeated. When she turned, Chakotay noticed a bruise on her skin beside her ocular implant. Otherwise, she appeared unharmed.

"I'm sure you did," Chakotay replied with a frown. Those five bit off more than they could chew when they messed with Seven. Her Borg-enhanced strength and agility combined with their intoxication made the fight less one-sided. With what little she had told him, it sounded more like an assault with Seven the victim, regardless of the outcome. It bothered Chakotay that Seven was being held at all. "Why are you still here and the others were released?"

"The Captain of the _Excelsior_ arrived and signed for the others. I overheard they were to be confined to quarters."

"Were charges filed?"

"Not that I'm aware of."

Chakotay now understood. It was likely nothing was filed and that everyone involved would prefer it that way. Chakotay frowned again. He didn't like the idea of those five getting away with assault. "Would you like to file charges?"

"I would like to get out of here," Seven snapped, showing her intense displeasure again. She seemed to regret her anger as soon as it was out of her mouth and turned away. Chakotay didn't blame her for the anger. What a way to be welcomed back to Earth and humanity.

Chakotay nodded. "Agreed. Let's get you to your assigned quarters. You must need to regenerate as much as I need to sleep." They both stood and then Chakotay said, "Chief, I'm ready to sign for Seven and have her released." He assumed their entire conversation had been monitored.

" _Please come to the front desk for processing_ ," Reynolds voice came over the open comm.

When they arrived, Reynolds had the orders ready on a PADD for Chakotay's signature. Chakotay was about to sign when he noticed something in the wording. He looked up to Reynolds. "We no longer have access to _Voyager_. It says here that Seven needs to be confined to quarters with ship's security notified."

"As long as you maintain continuous accountability," Reynolds replied, "that should be fine."

"Continuous accountability?" Chakotay asked.

Reynolds nodded. "You'll have to ensure continuous accountability or I can't release her into your custody."

"No charges have been filed," Chakotay snapped back.

"I'm sorry sir, its standard procedure in cases like this involving Star Fleet personnel, with or without formal charges."

"She is not in Star Fleet!" Chakotay was getting frustrated. "I'm not in Star Fleet," he added as an afterthought.

Reynolds shook his head. "I suppose we could transfer her to the City's detention center and you could process this through them."

"How long would that take?"

"We could make the transfer first thing in the morning," Reynolds replied.

"That's unacceptable," Chakotay fumed.

"It's fine Commander…" Seven began, but Chakotay put up his hand to stop her.

"No it's not." Whether it was lack of sleep or a growing anger over Seven's mistreatment, he wasn't going to let this go. He turned back to Reynolds. "If Seven were to remain with me, would that be acceptable for continuous accountability?"

Reynolds appeared uncertain. "You might be right that it would be more appropriate for the civilian authorities to handle this."

Chakotay quickly signed the release and pushed the PADD back towards Reynolds. "No," he said and stepped away. "We're good. Thank you Chief."

He turned to make his way quickly to the door and heard Seven follow behind him. When they got outside, it was already dark. Alex was waiting on a bench. Chakotay went up to him. "Alex, this is Seven of Nine. A crewmember from _Voyager_. Could you see about authorizing a site to site transport for us? I'm not going to risk travel in the streets at night."

A flash of surprise crossed Alex's face but quickly vanished. If Chakotay had been looking, Seven had had a similar reaction.

Chakotay turned to Seven. "Where did they move your alcove?"

"As far as I know, the Borg alcoves are still aboard _Voyager_ ," Seven replied. "As with the rest of the crew, my personal items were transferred to quarters here in San Francisco soon after we arrived."

"How long can you go without regenerating?"

"Several days."

Chakotay snorted. "That's another thing we'll have to take care of in the morning. I'm also going to contact Star Fleet Security and press charges against those officers from the _Excelsior_ who attacked you."

Seven didn't object, although Chakotay wouldn't have listened if she had. Perhaps Seven realized this. Chakotay's assigned quarters were small, but probably a little larger than those assigned to Seven. He turned to Alex. "My assigned quarters down in the Marina district then."

Alex nodded and touched his communicator. "Base. Initiate site to site transport for the two signals in front of me to Commander Chakotay's assigned quarters."

" _Understood. Stand by_."

"See you in the morning then," Alex said to the two of them.

"Thanks Alex," Chakotay responded just before the transporter beam initiated.

They arrived in the dark, but as soon as the sensors detected their presence, the lights flickered on. The quarters were no bigger than those Chakotay had on _Voyager_. Chakotay's personal items from _Voyager_ lay in piles near the couch in the living room. There had been no time to do much of anything with them in the past two days.

Chakotay motioned to the only bedroom. "You can take the bedroom, Seven. I'll stay out here on the couch." He realized it wasn't late, but he was tired and planned to go to sleep as soon as he could.

"No Commander," Seven replied. "You appear fatigued and should retire immediately. I do not wish to inconvenience you further."

"There is no inconvenience Seven."

"I insist," Seven said firmly.

He glanced longingly at the bedroom door and sighed heavily. "Fine, we'll get this sorted out tomorrow."

"Good night Commander."

Chakotay nodded, and moved into the bedroom. There was a washroom off to one side and a view of San Francisco Bay on the other. He was going to wash up and change, but decided to lay down for just a short time first to clear his head. He fell asleep immediately. He dreamed of the Maquis. He dreamed he was with them on a colony in the Demilitarized Zone. The Cardassians with their Jem'Hadar allies from the Dominion were attacking, and they had no chance. B'Elanna, Cathal, Ayala, Jor, and the rest of the _Val Jean_ crew were with him. Even Kathryn and Tom and others in Star Fleet fought by his side. And Seven was there as well…

What finally woke him was the smell of something cooking. He sat up and realized he had not only slept in his clothes, but also on top of the covers. It was just past 7:30am local time. He opened the bedroom door to see Seven in the kitchen. She appeared as she had been the night before and he wondered if she had slept at all.

"Good morning," he said to announce his presence.

"Good morning Commander," Seven replied and turned to greet him, "did you sleep well?"

Chakotay took a breath and nodded as he let it out. "Extremely well. Thank you. I was exhausted."

Seven nodded in confirmation and returned to the stove. She was cooking something on the heating element and not using a replicator. "Please take a seat," she then said. "I have made enough for both of us. Our breakfast is almost complete."

Whatever it was, it was familiar and made the quarters smell wonderful. Something you never get with replicated food no matter how good the food tasted. Chakotay suddenly realized he was famished, and as if on cue, his stomach growled loudly.

Seven turned with one eyebrow raised and then they both moved to the small table that was already set for two. As it turned out, Seven had made his favorite, fried eggs in toast and seasoned with hollandaise and paprika. Chakotay sat down with a smile. This was unexpected. "This happens to be my favorite breakfast," he said.

"I know," Seven replied.

How could she know? Chakotay thought, and then with a start he realized how. The neural link from when they disconnected Seven from the Hive Mind. They never spoke of it. He didn't think of it often, but she perhaps knew more about him than most, and he her.

"I apologize Commander," Seven said, picking up on his discomfort.

He had never had a great deal of interaction with Seven on _Voyager_ apart from ship's duties. With regard to integrating Seven into the crew and helping her claim back her humanity, he had left that to Kathryn. He thought of something from the night before. Had he really been waiting for Seven to betray them? Seeing her now, his trepidations about having her on the crew seemed irrelevant. "It's fine," he finally said. What could he say?

"I wish to also apologize for my behavior last night," Seven said as she placed the plates down and sat down herself. "I was under a great deal of stress. I was not intending to defend the Borg when we were speaking in the detention center. The Borg is deplorable and its actions inexcusable."

"And many actions perpetrated by humans in Earth's history are inexcusable as well," Chakotay added, intending to convey he understood Seven's motivation and did not begrudge her in the least.

Seven nodded. They ate in silence for a time. Chakotay savored every bite. He wondered where she had learned how to cook so well.

"I have been covertly experimenting on my own," Seven commented, apparently anticipating or guessing Chakotay's unspoken question. "Neelix's cooking was never satisfactory to me."

"Sometimes, to me as well," Chakotay replied with a laugh.

"I believe I have an aunt who still lives here on Earth," Seven said. "With my parents dead or assimilated, that is the extent of my family that remains."

Chakotay was confused for a moment, but then realized Seven was simply picking up on another thread of the conversation from the previous night. When she objected to his referring to the former crew of _Voyager_ as a family.

"A more appropriate appellation might be an alliance," Seven continued. "One definition being a close association of people formed to advance common interests or causes."

Chakotay chuckled. The Voyager Alliance just didn't seem to have the same ring to it. He was about to state as much when there was a flash out the window. Both Chakotay and Seven looked, and then the building shook. It was an explosion. Nearby and in the direction of Star Fleet Headquarters. Chakotay and Seven stood.

Suddenly sirens began to wail throughout the building. " _Prepare for emergency beam out_ ," the computer voice intoned over speakers.

Several things flashed through Chakotay's mind, and then he stepped over quickly and wrapped his arms around Seven. He wasn't sure if her biosignature had been recorded the night before by the building's automated system, or the system's prioritization protocols, or if Seven's Borg components would hamper transporter lock. Better to be safe. The two of them beamed out together seconds before another photon torpedo hit and took out the entire block.

#

Author's note: Thank you to those who followed, favorited and/or reviewed. You know, I'm not necessarily opposed to J/C, but I do like C/7 so much more. Besides, the canon episode "Shattered" pretty much ended J/C as a romantic couple and firmly established a strong friendship between them (and that's just fine – I think it works well too). In this AU, it's just happening a little sooner…


	3. A New Mission

Chapter 3 – A New Mission

Admiral Owen Paris looked at the screen in front of him in disgust. What a waste.

"Nine Breen light cruisers have been destroyed by the _Excelsior_ and the Planetary Defense Satellite Perimeter," the Star Fleet Operations Officer said, interrupting his thoughts. "Two others are damaged and moving out of system." He was in the back-up Command Post with a half dozen other officers beamed there in the opening moments of the Breen attack. The Command Post at Star Fleet Headquarters was destroyed only ten minutes before. Although Paris headed one of the divisions in Star Fleet Intelligence, he now found himself ranking officer in this alternative command, control and communications center and coordinated Star Fleet's defense efforts. The battle was all over in a matter of minutes, and for the most part, those in the Command Post were now simply witnesses to the aftermath and response of emergency personnel.

"Do we detect any of their heavy cruisers in system?" Paris asked.

"No admiral, the status remains unchanged. It appears to have been a limited attack with the eleven smaller vessels exiting warp just outside of the Moon's orbit."

Paris scanned the displays. Star Fleet Headquarters was now a crater. Many of his friends didn't make it out and were now dead in that crater. The Golden Gate Bridge was severed in the middle. Smoke billowed up from several areas around the city that took direct hits from Breen photon torpedoes. Most had been relatively low yield, but the damage was extensive. This would be very bad for morale which was already low. Not only had the Dominion gained a powerful ally in the Breen, the strike at the heart of the Federation was bold and despicable and would weigh heavily on the Federation and its allies.

"They achieved their objective Hank," Paris said grimly. "What do we have for pursuit?"

The Ops officer shook his head. " _Excelsior_ took heavy damage. Even _Voyager_ was hit. There's no other ships in orbit."

"Utopia Planitia?" Paris asked, already knowing the answer. He had gone through the inventory of captured, damaged and derelict vessels just yesterday.

"Nothing ready."

The fleet was spread way too thin due to the war. The few vessels remaining that could be used lacked the qualified personnel to crew them. Admiral Paris turned to a Lieutenant who was nearby. Now that the immediate danger had passed, he knew the sensor folks in the Command Post were only monitoring the situation. "Lieutenant, can I ask you a favor?"

The young woman turned quickly. "Of course Admiral, what do you need?"

"Could you track down my son," Paris said soberly. "Lieutenant Thomas Eugene Paris, formerly of _Voyager_."

"Of course Admiral."

The euphoria of _Voyager_ 's return and being reunited with his son seemed ages ago. How devastating it would be to lose him in the Breen attack less than forty eight hours later. He had spent agonizing years thinking his only son was dead, regretting their last conversation and feeling he had lost the chance to make it right. And now, an all too short reunion and things still not settled between them. Tom had to be okay. He was the only family Owen had left.

And then another thought occurred to Paris. He had been reviewing the transcripts of the various _Voyager_ crew debriefings when the Breen attack started. Combined with his recent thoughts of Utopia Planitia, it gave him an intriguing idea. "While you're at it Lieutenant, find Commander Chakotay and have him report to me immediately at my office in Intelligence. He was also on _Voyager_." In his thoughts he added, if he's still alive and my office is still there, but he left that unsaid. Both were definite possibilities. He knew many of the _Voyager_ crew were being put up in the Marina district, and that area took a direct hit.

"Yes Admiral." The lieutenant responded without looking up from her console. He saw she was already calling up evacuation lists from the various shelters about the city.

Behind him he heard the tell-tale whine of a transporter beam. He turned to face Admiral Montgomery, the vice-commander of Earth Security, and several others from her staff who had been in France during the attack. She was now head of Planetary Defense and would be taking over the Command Post.

"How's it look Owen?" she asked.

"A mess," Paris spat and stood. "I'm heading back to Intelligence, if it's still standing." He motioned to the lieutenant sifting through evacuation records. "Have your officer contact me as soon as she has the information I requested."

Star Fleet Intelligence was housed in a non-descript building on the periphery of the Headquarters complex. Most of the site-to-site transporter channels were off-line pending the completion of a level three diagnostics, and so Owen had to walk. It was even more of a mess on the ground, but eventually he made his way to the Intelligence building. Miraculously, it was untouched. He went up to his ninth floor office and sat heavily into the chair behind his desk. He was downloading some files from the Utopia Planitia manifest when his comm chimed.

"Go ahead," he said. It was still morning, but he felt tired and as if the weight of the Galaxy was on him.

" _Admiral, this is Lieutenant Watson from the Command Post. I've located your son. He was injured during the emergency transport of his building and is now at Richmond Medical Facility in stable condition. I've sent you the details_."

Owen sighed. "Thank you Lieutenant." He turned to his computer and opened the file.

" _I was also able to contact Commander Chakotay and directed him to your office. He should be there any minute_."

"Very good. I appreciate your help."

" _My pleasure sir_. _Watson out_."

Owen scanned the report forwarded by Lieutenant Watson. His son was hospitalized due to cellular damage. During the emergency beam out, his pattern must not have fully dematerialized when the building he was in was destroyed. Typically the transporter can compensate for such a pattern disruption, but with the many hundreds of transports going on simultaneously, the compensation was apparently incomplete. Some damage to his cells must have occurred, but in cases like this, his recovery would probably only take a few days. Owen was anxious to go see him, but one other issue remained. He returned to the Utopia Planitia manifest and found what he was looking for.

The comm on his desk chimed again. This time it was his personal aide. " _Admiral, Commander Chakotay is here as requested_."

"Send him in," Owen responded, pleased he'd be able to act on his idea so quickly. The door to his office swished open. There was a hesitation and Owen could hear some words exchanged between his aide and Commander Chakotay outside his door that he couldn't quite make out, and then Chakotay walked in followed closely by someone else. Owen recognized Chakotay's companion immediately for he was familiar with everyone who had returned on _Voyager_. The other individual was Seven of Nine, the ex-Borg drone liberated from the Collective the previous year. Curious that she should be accompanying Chakotay. The initial debriefings hadn't indicated any association between the two, but of course _Voyager_ had only been back for two days and follow-up debriefing sessions had not yet been accomplished. As he thought about it, indications from the debriefings pointed to a possible connection between Chakotay and Captain Janeway, but many crews pair off their Captain and First Officer if they happened to be of opposite sex. That was probably the case with _Voyager_. He stood to greet them both. "Commander Chakotay. Seven of Nine."

"Admiral Paris," Chakotay responded, gripping his hand. "Any word on Tom?"

Owen nodded, pleased that Chakotay would think of his son. "Hospitalized, over in Richmond," Owen replied and motioned to the seats across from him at his desk. "He should be up and around in a couple days. I'm heading over there as soon as we're through and I'll tell him you were asking about him."

Chakotay took one of the seats across from the Admiral. Seven appeared ready to remain standing, but then reconsidered and slipped into the seat beside Chakotay.

"I suppose you're wondering why I asked to talk to you," Owen began cutting straight to the point. He was anxious to get over to Richmond and his son. "Just after the Breen attack, I was lamenting the fact that we have precious few vessels at our disposal, and Star Fleet personnel are spread thin."

"Are you looking for recruits amongst the Maquis from _Voyager_ to join Star Fleet?" Chakotay cut in.

Owen frowned. "Yes and no," he finally replied. He touched a button on his desk and the image of a vessel appeared on the screen behind him. Owen saw a flash of recognition cross Chakotay's face and explained. "A captured Maquis vessel. It's currently in a station keeping orbit about Mars near the Utopia Planitia shipyards."

"Almost identical to my old ship, the _Val Jean_ ," Chakotay commented.

Owen nodded. "There have been some modifications. Engines and power systems were upgraded and the weapons system improved, but you'll find it handles about the same."

"Maneuverable, but sometimes too much so such that the inertial dampers couldn't keep up," Chakotay mused. "We sometimes had a rough time of it."

"The added power might help you with that situation."

Chakotay looked surprised. "What are you suggesting Admiral?"

Owen tapped his fingers on his desk before continuing. "I need information. I need a ship and crew that can go places and get that information. Most all of our resources are now devoted to the front lines of the war effort. I need a ship directly accountable to me."

"And now you have a ready-made crew for a Maquis raider drop into your lap," Chakotay finished. "But are you sure you can trust us?"

"I've read all the debriefings Commander," Owen immediately replied. "I know I can trust you."

Chakotay frowned. "I don't know. Running about behind enemy lines in a war zone doing errands for Star Fleet is not exactly what I had in mind. Nor any of my crewmates I'm sure."

"You'll have autonomy," Owen pressed. "Plenty of time for other work in the former Demilitarized Zone between Federation Space and the Cardassians. What I'll need is commensurate to things you perhaps want to find out yourself." Owen could see that Chakotay appeared swayed. Seven of Nine remained unreadable. How much sway her opinion had over his, Owen could only guess. "There is one other request I have," he added.

"What's that?"

Owen paused and looked past Chakotay and out his office window. A pillar of smoke from the Marina district was still visible. "I'd like you to take my son with you. He'll be recovered in a couple days. He's a good pilot, and would serve you well, particularly if you had to hide out in the Badlands again."

"You don't want him to rejoin Star Fleet?"

Owen shook his head. "It would take time to expunge his record. I don't think he's interested anyway, and he could really make a difference for you. His time aboard _Voyager_ has been good for him, that much is obvious. I'd like that to continue."

"I'd have to ask Tom," Chakotay replied. "If we do this at all."

Chakotay didn't seem to be convinced. Perhaps Owen had one more card to play. Captain Janeway had been very protective of the entire _Voyager_ crew, but of Seven of Nine in particular. Even now there was a struggle between Janeway and Star Fleet Research. It was almost definite, however, _Voyager_ would be staffed with an all Star Fleet crew and join the war effort as soon as possible. Star Fleet Research was already pouring over the Quantum Slipstream technology and would like nothing better than to have a Borg drone to study as well. Of course Seven of Nine would be assigned to Star Fleet Research. He considered Chakotay and Seven of Nine before him. He would have to examine the transcripts of the _Voyager_ crew depositions more carefully. A relationship between the two of them was never indicated, but that didn't mean it was impossible. In retrospect he should have asked why Seven of Nine was accompanying Chakotay when they first arrived. It was of little consequence. Star Fleet Research would undoubtedly get their way in the end if Owen didn't intervene, and so perhaps he could do Commander Chakotay and Seven of Nine a favor in that regard. Captain Janeway may even be placated by the arrangement.

"Seven of Nine would of course be allowed to join your crew as well," Owen remarked, hoping they were aware of Star Fleet Research's request and that it might tip the balance.

"That would be satisfactory," Seven said, speaking for the first time. A curious way to put it, Owen thought, but it appeared to have the desired effect.

Chakotay turned to her and then nodded slowly. He turned back to Admiral Paris, the wheels in his head obviously now turning and his mind made up. "It would require one of the Borg alcoves from _Voyager_ to be transferred to the Maquis raider."

Owen considered the request. There would be plenty of Borg artifacts left for Star Fleet Research. It might take some convincing, but he was confident he could get it done. "That can be worked out," he finally said.

"There might be some issues with the Betazed embassy and the Vulcan Science Academy regarding two of my crewmembers."

Owen nodded. He was fully briefed. "Not a problem."

Chakotay continued nodding and a smile grew on his face. "Then we accept," he finally said.

"Assemble the rest of your crew," Owen replied to both of them. "Keep it low key for now. There are some things I'll have to smooth over to get this through. Make your way to Sagan on Mars and be ready to go at a moment's notice in about two days." He nodded satisfied, indicating the meeting was over, and the three of them stood. "The vessel is unnamed as yet, do you have any thoughts on that Captain?"

Chakotay smiled again, a new twinkle in his eye, and turned to Seven of Nine. "What do you think Seven?"

Seven of Nine considered for only a moment. "The _Val Jean_ of course."


	4. Perspectives

Chapter 4 - Perspectives

Tom Paris was in the _Val Jean_ 's Engineering crawl space helping B'Elanna Torres repair a plasma manifold on the secondary systems. He had just turned over the piloting station to Marina Jor and ended his duty cycle on the bridge. When off duty, he usually helped out in Engineering. At least during the times B'Elanna was there. The manifold powered the enhanced multi-phasic shields they had installed on the ship at Utopia Planitia, a little something brought back from the Delta Quadrant that not only improved shield performance but also helped mask their warp signature.

The _Val Jean_ and her crew were inventorying the destruction wrought by the Cardassians and their allies in and near the former Demilitarized Zone. Nivoch, Panora, Quatal Prime, and just recently Dorvan V. It was a mission of interest to both the former Maquis on the _Val Jean_ , many of whom came from this region of space, and Admiral Owen Paris of Star Fleet Intelligence. They were tasked to locate all possible Dominion military or fabrication facilities, and they were assessing each planet's habitability and suitability for recolonization for the time when the war was finally over.

"Hand me that interphasic scanner," B'Elanna said, reaching back. Tom glanced about and picked up the three-pronged device and placed it into her outstretched hand. She worked for a bit and then added, "You know, I think you have it all wrong. Your father wasn't trying to get rid of you by suggesting you be one of the pilots on this mission. Maybe he thought it would be a good fit for you."

"When he visited me in the hospital, he was distant. He told me Chakotay was asking about me but never once said he had been concerned. It was like he wanted to be anywhere but there."

"Maybe that's just his way," B'Elanna retorted. "You've mentioned he was like that when you were growing up. Spit and polish Star Fleet."

"Face it. I'm an embarrassment to him," Tom replied. "He was more than happy to get rid of me."

B'Elanna pulled herself out from the panel shaking her head. "You are not an embarrassment to him. I think he was thrilled to see you during the welcome reception. I was there."

Tom looked at her skeptically.

"Okay, so he was a bit stiff," B'Elanna continued. "He did give me a hug when he found out we were a couple." Tom wasn't convinced and B'Elanna shook her head again and moved back into the panel. "I need the phase coil resonator," she said.

"Dodecahedral or Winegarth head?"

"Winegarth," B'Elanna scoffed as if Tom should have known better.

Tom looked about the crawlspace. "It's not here."

B'Elanna pulled back out and frowned as she examined the tools herself. "I think I saw Dalby using it in the cargo bay. By the control panel near the entrance. He never puts anything away."

"I'll get it," Tom offered and moved out of the crawl space. The warp engine hummed smoothly with only Chell and Suvik on duty. Suvik nodded as Tom passed. Suvik was one of the two new crew members on the _Val Jean_ who did not come from _Voyager_. He was T'Vora's husband who arrived on Mars from Vulcan just before they departed.

The _Val Jean_ had three decks. The bridge and mess with the senior staff quarters were on the top deck, the rest of the crew quarters and sickbay were on the middle deck, and weapons control, engineering, and the cargo bay on the lower deck. They were connected by a central shaft, the vessel being too small to warrant a turbolift. Tom moved aft to the entrance to the cargo bay. Just inside were Chakotay, Ayala, and Seven of Nine. They stopped their conversation when he entered.

"Anyone see a Winegarth phase coil resonator laying around here?" Tom asked the three of them.

Both Chakotay and Ayala shrugged their shoulders with a targ in a headlamp look. It didn't give one a whole lot of confidence when the Captain and First Officer appeared as if they couldn't tell a phase coil resonator from an optronic coupler. Seven of Nine, however, stepped forward from beside Chakotay and picked up the wayward engineering tool that was leaning against the bulkhead behind a container. "Here," she said abruptly and pushed the tool towards Tom.

"Thanks," Tom said. Seven was never one for small talk.

As Tom was leaving he overheard the continuation of the conversation that must have been going on between the three of them before he arrived. "Crewman O'Donnell will stay onboard this time and I will accompany the Captain on the away mission," Seven said and Chakotay responded, "It's settled then."

What was that all about? He had heard there was an incident on Dorvan V. He glanced back and saw that Ayala was moving towards the central shaft while Seven and Chakotay continued to converse just inside the cargo bay entrance. When he learned that Seven was going to be part of the _Val Jean_ crew, he guessed she would have a difficult time integrating. He liked Seven, but always felt on _Voyager_ she relied on Captain Janeway as a buffer between her abrasiveness and the rest of the crew. Janeway had given Seven a great deal of leeway, and quite frankly, Tom didn't think she and Chakotay would get along in the same way. By all accounts, however, he had been wrong. Seven had changed, or Chakotay had changed, or both…

He didn't think more of it as he ducked back down into the crawl space to bring B'Elanna the tool she needed.

#

Liam O'Donnell made the sign of the cross and put down the rosary he had been holding next to the medical tricorder on the counter in front of him. He was in the _Val Jean_ 's sick bay, which was essentially just one of the ship's crew quarters on the middle deck that had been converted to have a single biobed and all the ship's medical supplies. Liam had joined the _Val Jean_ 's crew on Earth two weeks before. His brother, Cathal, had been one of the Maquis crewmembers of _Voyager_ , although both Liam and Cathal had known Chakotay since childhood and Liam some of the others on the crew as well before the incident that sent them to the Delta Quadrant. He was happy when Chakotay offered him a position on the ship and now Liam served as the _Val Jean_ 's doctor.

They had just surveyed the planet Dorvan V in the former Demilitarized Zone between Federation and Cardassian space. The _Val Jean_ was small enough and swift enough to avoid encountering the Cardassians and Dominion fleet, and so they were able to travel relatively freely through enemy space. Liam and Cathal had visited Dorvan V many times in their youth. It was the next planet on the itinerary, however, that concerned Liam and was on his mind. It used to be Liam and Cathal's home before the war.

Liam heard a noise by the door and turned. It was his brother.

"What were you praying for?" Cathal asked gesturing to the rosary. He sounded angry, or disgusted. Cathal was a few years older than Liam. They were the two youngest of a family of four sons. Their oldest brother had died at Wolf 359 while serving in Star Fleet, and their other brother moved his family to Alpha Erindani at the start of the war while Liam stayed with their parents on Pax.

"For the Captain and his family," Liam replied, thinking of the world they were leaving. "For those Cardassians we found on Dorvan V."

"Those Cardassians deserved what they got," Cathal spat back. He seemed eager for a confrontation. It had been like this for two weeks now.

Liam sighed. "If the rumors are true, the Cardassians may be our allies soon."

Cathal snorted. "They can't be trusted."

"In any case, those Cardassians were simple farmers, not soldiers. They are children of the same God as we are. And God loves them too."

Cathal's expression turned dark. "How can you still speak of God as love," he said. "The suffering and pain we've seen. Your own parents killed."

"God loves…"

"There is no God," Cathal interrupted. "It's all a fantasy. A glorified myth."

Liam frowned. His brother had never had deep faith in God or the Church, and the destruction of their world while he was stranded in the Delta Quadrant had snuffed out what faith he did have and turned it in another direction. An undemanding faith based on the absence of absolute moral truths where beliefs conform to wants and opinions and can be easily manipulated to justify anything… even the killing of innocents. A moral relativism both self-serving and dangerous. Liam suspected Cathal also blamed him for their parents' deaths. Their parents had refused to leave…

"I suppose you think God will send me to hell," Cathal stated, interrupting his thoughts.

"Hell is eternity without God," Liam countered. "If you reject God, it is you who are sending yourself to hell. Not God nor anyone else."

"To hell with you," Cathal shot back and turned to leave, bumping into Tom Paris who had just arrived behind him. Cathal glared at Tom for a moment, and then stormed off.

Tom looked unsure of what to do. He was holding his left hand in his right close to his chest. He was obviously injured and needed Liam's services. "I could come back," Tom began but Liam waved that thought away.

"What happened to your hand?" Liam asked, grabbing a medical tricorder and stepping towards the door.

"I was helping B'Elanna with a plasma manifold and cut my hand on the edge of the panel." He took off the bandage he was holding to reveal a 5 cm long gash on the back of his left hand. "Clumsy and stupid," he added. Blood started to trickle out as Liam examined it.

"It's not that deep," Liam commented. "We can treat it with a dermal regenerator." Liam put down the tricorder and picked up the dermal regenerator from his desk. He passed it over Tom's wound and immediately it began to heal. A few more passes and it all but disappeared. "There you go," he said when complete.

Tom rubbed the back of his hand a few times. Likely it was tingling a bit from the treatment. He hesitated for a few moments. "Sorry I heard all that," he finally said.

Liam shrugged. The hostility between him and Cathal wasn't exactly a secret. "How well do you know my brother?"

"Not that well," Tom confessed. "He was quiet and we never interacted much on _Voyager_. I got the feeling he didn't like me."

"For betraying the Maquis?" Liam inquired. He was acquainted with Tom's history in relation to Star Fleet and the Maquis. Only after it was out of his mouth that he realized it might not be the most tactful thing to say. Tom was one of the crew who had reached out to befriend Liam and he had grown relaxed and unreserved around him. Likely Tom didn't care.

Tom laughed. "Something like that, I suppose."

Liam chided himself for the slip, but then a thought occurred to him. Perhaps Tom could give him some insight regarding his brother. He needed something to reach out to Cathal. "He's angry now," he began, referring to Cathal.

"A lot of people aboard this ship are," Tom observed. "They want to be fighting the Cardassians and the Dominion instead of skulking around in the Demilitarized Zone inventorying destroyed colonies and looking for secret bases. And the rumors we've heard about what happened at Chin'toka."

"The _Val Jean_ is not necessarily the best ship to take into combat. We're doing our part."

"I suppose. It just seems like we should be doing more."

"Admiral Paris is pleased with our progress and the intelligence we're providing." Liam said and noted that Tom seemed to stiffen a bit at the mention of his father. There was obviously something deeper there. "Is there a problem between you and your father?"

"You could say that."

"Do you want to talk about it?"

Tom laughed again. "Are you the ship's counselor now Liam?"

Liam shrugged and laughed himself. How easy it was to fall back into that sort of role. "Just wanting to help. Sometimes it's beneficial to talk things through with someone else."

Tom nodded thoughtfully. "It's true. I've been talking to B'Elanna a lot about it."

"What does she say?"

"She says I should talk to my father. Clear the air while I still have the chance."

Liam remained quiet.

"My father and I don't see eye to eye on many things," Tom continued. "I'm a big disappointment to him. He was more than happy for me to ship off on the _Val Jean_ and get rid of me."

"That doesn't seem likely."

Tom appeared thoughtful. "B'Elanna doesn't think so either."

"Perhaps you should listen to her and ask the Captain about you transmitting the next report," Liam suggested. "We're due to make another contact with the Admiral after Pax."

Tom frowned. "Maybe so."

Tom turned to leave, but Liam still wanted to get some more information from him that might help him with his brother. "Wait. Before you go, could you tell me about Cathal? His friends here or on _Voyager_?"

Tom shook his head. "I'm not exactly sure. Like I said, I don't know him very well. But you know, Chakotay stayed close with all the Maquis. I'm sure he would know."

That's true. The Captain was close with everyone on board. He would be a good one to talk to. In the past two weeks, they had spoken a few times. Mostly reminiscing about their youth. Although they had grown up on different colony worlds, the interaction between the two had been frequent enough that they had shared a friendship. These past couple of days had been hard. Chakotay tried to remain strong for the crew, but it was obvious he had been affected by the survey of Dorvan V. "How is the Captain doing?"

"He seems okay," Tom replied, although he didn't sound convinced. "I think he confides in Ayala and they have a strong friendship."

"What about Seven of Nine?"

"What about her?" Tom asked, sounding a bit perplexed.

"I see the Captain with Seven of Nine more often than not," Liam observed. "Is there something between the two of them?"

Tom looked surprised. "Seven and Chakotay? No, there's nothing between them." After he said it, however, he seemed to be thinking something over. He then shook his head, as if dismissing the thought. "No. Chakotay is just close with everyone. He's the Captain and it's a small ship."

Liam shrugged. It was just something he had noticed. He was the new guy, after all, and was still getting to know everyone. Seven of Nine intrigued him, although he hadn't yet spoken very much with her. A liberated Borg drone. He had questions about the Collective, about the beliefs of the Hive Mind, but was unsure if it would be appropriate to ask. She seemed rigid and mostly kept to herself or was with the Captain. It was too bad. His friend Chakotay needed someone, particularly now, and from the little things he had observed from afar, they appeared to be a good match for each other.

#

Cathal moved down the central shaft towards Engineering. He was too agitated to go to his quarters and wanted to blow off some steam in the ship's gym. The gym was nothing more than a section of the cargo bay that contained some exercise equipment, but it would have to suffice. He wasn't really paying attention to where he was going and nearly bumped into the Captain who was standing in the entrance with Seven of Nine.

"Everything okay Cathal?" Chakotay inquired.

"I'm fine," Cathal responded, not meeting Chakotay's eyes.

Chakotay didn't answer at first, so Cathal finally looked up. Chakotay was looking at him closely. "I've decided to take you off the landing parties at Pax," he finally said. "I think you need some time."

"If it's about those Cardassians," Cathal began, but Chakotay interrupted him by putting his hand up.

"There was no need to kill them," Chakotay said evenly. "You exceeded your authority."

"They were masking their life signs," Cathal protested. "One of them had a weapon."

"He was protecting his family," Chakotay replied. "Cathal, it's not worth it. We're here gathering information, that's all."

"Chakotay. We played in that field as kids. They had no right being there. That was your home!"

Chakotay didn't respond. He appeared upset, and why shouldn't he be? The Cardassians had destroyed Chakotay's homeworld. The Cardassians had destroyed Cathal's homeworld and needed to pay the price. Cathal noticed that Seven of Nine edged slightly closer to Chakotay as if to say something, but remained silent. She did, however, appear agitated and emanated a palpable hostility. Finally Chakotay sighed heavily. He glanced briefly at Seven of Nine and then turned back to face Cathal. "This is not something open for debate. I hope you'll understand I'm doing this for you own good. You're off the next landing party. I'm going to my quarters." He left abruptly, leaving Cathal and Seven of Nine behind.

Cathal turned to Seven of Nine. He had never been comfortable around the ex-Borg drone, whether on _Voyager_ or now on the _Val Jean_. He felt compelled, however, to explain himself. "The Cardassians killed my parents," he said. "They showed no mercy, why should we show mercy to them?"

Seven of Nine seemed to be studying him, and for whatever reason, it suddenly occurred to Cathal that the hostility she displayed was directed towards him. This made him even more uncomfortable. Cathal was about to leave and go into the cargo bay as he originally intended when she spoke. "The Borg killed and assimilated some of your relatives at Wolf 359. Would you like to exact revenge by killing me?"

Cathal had to admit it did cross his mind when she first arrived on _Voyager,_ but that was over two years ago. Of course he didn't think that now… but, he wasn't quite sure how to respond.

"The problem with a subjective morality is that it is no morality at all," Seven of Nine stated. She then turned on her heel and moved quickly towards the central shaft without waiting for a response.


	5. Broken Worlds

Chapter 5 – Broken Worlds

The town lay flattened. Most every stone that once served as part of a wall was now scattered on the ground. Seven turned and surveyed the destruction while conducting scans for residual energy readings. They had already found no evidence of Cardassian or Dominion activity from orbit and were now conducting on-site scans to assess habitability and survey the extent of the damage. The one exception to the utter devastation was a structure that stood near what must have been the town's central square. Miraculously, a single wall remained reaching skyward, and adorned at the top was a simple brass cross. It shown brightly in the afternoon sun, incongruent with the surroundings.

It was twenty-one days since _Voyager_ returned to Earth, sixteen days since the _Val Jean_ 's mission began, and this was the eighth planet in their survey of planets in and near the former Demilitarized Zone. They were on the world Pax, once a thriving colony inhabited primarily by a group who practiced one of Earth's ancient religions. It was Cathal and Liam O'Donnell's home, or at least it used to be. The transformation of the inhabited regions of the planet to a wasteland by orbital bombardment was now an all too common sight. Interestingly, Pax had fared better than most, perhaps because it was mostly evacuated before the attack.

Near the ruined building adorned with the cross Seven noticed Liam and Chakotay standing. The three of them were on the same landing party and had beamed down together while other groups from the _Val Jean_ evaluated different locations. It was their third survey site of the day. Chakotay had his hand on the other man's shoulder and was speaking to him. Although they were too far off for Seven to hear his words, she knew Chakotay was comforting the man whose world now lay in ruins. The same scene had played out many times before in the previous weeks. After a moment, Chakotay patted Liam's back and moved off to continue his own scans. Liam remained, his eyes fixated up towards the cross atop the building. Seven completed her scans and was tempted to follow Chakotay. The two of them would undoubtedly work this evening on completing the report for Admiral Paris, and so instead she moved across the open space to join Liam and examine the building more closely for herself. Seven hadn't spoken to Liam much during the current surveys nor while on the _Val Jean_ either. The Borg implant in her glenohumeral joint was beginning to cause her discomfort, however, and so his services would soon be required.

"This was my church," Liam said when Seven approached. "Just a small parish in a small town on an out of the way world, but it was a beautiful place to live."

His comment seemed to require a response. The small size of the _Val Jean_ and its crew meant constant interactions, and so Seven had plenty of opportunities to practice her social skills. She felt she was slowly improving. The Doctor would be proud. Unfortunately, she still often felt at a loss to know the correct thing to say and only felt at ease around Chakotay and a handful of others. "I'm sorry," she managed. "This was your home?"

Liam nodded and gestured across the rubble. "My parents' house was over there," he commented then turned to look at Seven. "And this is where I served. I am the parish priest, or at least I used to be. Are you here for confession Seven?"

Through the Borg, Seven was familiar with most of Earth's religions. Was he saying he was an ordained priest of his Church? "Are you not a doctor?" she asked instead.

"Oh, I'm that too," Liam responded. "I was a doctor first, and then about eight years ago I felt a calling to be a priest and went to seminary. I was ordained four years later."

"Why are you serving on the _Val Jean_ and not with the evacuated colonists?" Seven asked.

Liam looked troubled. "I stayed with my parents for as long as I could," he finally said. "I guess, in the end, I was too scared to be a martyr. I escaped and went to Earth…"

It was evident to Seven something distressed him about this particular topic. Chakotay had mentioned something about Liam and Cathal's parents the other day. She decided to turn the dialogue back to his original question. "I do not practice any religion or profess any specific religious beliefs."

Liam appeared confused at first, but her comment did have the desired effect. "That you know of, anyway," he countered.

"Clarify."

"Everyone practices a religion based on faith, whether they realize it or not."

Seven considered this statement for a moment, made curious by its implication. When she questioned Chakotay the other day on morality and its source, he answered that he thought the existence of objective morality required the existence of a Great Spirit or God. Even religions that attempted to eliminate God still developed beliefs in the existence of an objective morality to preclude the nihilism that naturally followed without it. She was certain, of course, that she did not participate in any organized religion. Chakotay had attempted to lead her in a vision quest before they realized the akoonah did not function with her Borg physiology, but that didn't count. If the definition of religion, however, was a set of beliefs concerning the cause, nature, and purpose of the universe and foundation for an objective morality, it might be true that everyone must practice some sort of religion, organized or not. Perhaps it would be constructive to probe Liam's religion some more. She motioned up to the cross atop the church, "You believe in a single God and that this God became man and walked among humans nearly twenty-four hundred years ago."

"I do."

"It is this God who supplies your objective morality. In the end, the God in human form was executed by those who he came to save and died in reparation for all sin."

Liam turned back to the ruins of the church. "As it was, is now, and ever shall be, world without end," he said quietly. "Humans and all sentient species sometimes do terrible things." He turned to face Seven again. "But that's not the end of the story and it's not just ancient history. God still works with us. We are His people."

"Through the Holy Spirit," Seven replied. "In your religion, another aspect of God's triune nature."

Liam narrowed his eyes. "So, you do not practice, but you do know something about my beliefs."

Seven nodded. Although considered irrelevant, the Borg knew of most human religions, and those of all the other species assimilated into the Collective for that matter. Seven wasn't sure she wished to discuss exactly how she acquired her knowledge, and of course it was incomplete given the fact she was no longer connected to the Hive Mind. She decided to reveal something different that was none the less also true. "My parents were Lutheran, or at least our ancestors were. In the short time I had with them, we celebrated some holy days, but I don't think they practiced their faith."

"It happens," Liam commented, and frowned at the thought. "The Lutheran Rite is still quite active on Earth in Northern Europe," he said, shaking off whatever it was that was troubling him.

"That is my ancestral homeland, although I have only been there on one occasion when I was a child." Seven returned her attention to the church and the rest of the town beyond. "There's not much to salvage here."

Liam seemed pensive. "No," he said slowly. "I was hoping my brother would be able to come down with us, for some closure. But I understand the Captain's orders. Cathal is angry." He appeared to be turning something over in his mind. "He's angry at God for allowing this to happen."

Cathal's actions on Darvon V had adversely affected Chakotay, and so Seven was still not all that happy with him either. Cathal's anger towards his perceived God, however, seemed legitimate if God was purportedly omnipotent, omniscient, and omnibenevolent. Seven was aware of supposed logical arguments on evil that proved to some that God did not exist. For those with that inclination, these arguments formed the basis of their atheistic religion. There were other supposed logical arguments that proved to some that God must exist given the existence of good and evil. The details of both arguments were not remembered. "Events seem to transpire with no set plan. If God has control, why did God let this happen?" she asked, deciding to probe further. "For that matter, why did God let a six year old girl get assimilated by the Borg?" She hadn't intended on asking that second question. It just came out, which was somewhat alarming.

Liam looked surprised, but then paused as he considered. "Some say it's as simple as 'Free Will.' If God intervened to prevent evil, we would not have Free Will. We could never learn from our mistakes, nor grow in love and understanding."

"It was not my will to be assimilated," Seven countered, unable to hide her displeasure.

"The innocent often suffer from the mistakes and misdeeds of others," Liam agreed. "Is it God's fault? Others say God uses evil and suffering to bring about a greater good."

"Surely an omnipotent and omniscient supernatural being could bring about this greater good without the need for suffering." Her voice held more emotion in it than she was intending.

Liam shook his head. "Seven. Just because we don't understand something doesn't remove meaning or change truth. We are stuck here in this universe with limited knowledge and understanding and no real conception of what lies beyond our physical death."

"It could be nothing," Seven whispered. "Just death."

"Yes. It could be. This could be all there is, but I don't believe that. Everything in this universe is contingent on something back to its birth in the Big Bang. But God is not contingent. God is that which exists that must exist of which everything else is contingent. The miracle of salvation is that God desires us to be joined in him for eternity. In our temporal existence, how can we even conceive this and compare it to our time in this universe? How both arrogant and naïve we are to draw conclusions when we have but a small portion of the truth."

Seven paused. Discussions of this nature were still unfamiliar to her. Science had always been her forte and was easy by comparison. By its very nature, however, it could only go so far. Science could explain the what and how with great accuracy and precision, but not the why.

Liam was looking at her closely. "Forgive me," he said. "I'm perhaps getting a little carried away."

Seven shook her head. "Not at all. As Chakotay would say, we need to nourish our spiritual side. These are important subjects that require serious discussion."

Liam again seemed surprised. "Yes," he finally said with a smile. "That sounds like the Captain." He stopped and appeared to be thinking of something else. He turned to study the town square again. "At least most of the population of Pax was evacuated," he commented, changing the subject somewhat. He glanced around the ruins to the North and then his eyes fell back onto the church. "I tried to get my parents to leave, but they never did. The rest started leaving even before the Cardassian attacks in the Demilitarized Zone, and then we had a month or so before they expanded their aggression to here."

"Where did the colonists go?"

Liam sighed. "Everywhere, scattered about the quadrant now. The majority, however, went to live with the monastic community on Vulcan. Nearly a half million colonists are now refugees there."

"There's a human monastery on Vulcan?"

"Not exactly. The Church has a thriving community of native Vulcans and they were insistent on helping the Pax colonists. Some of those colonists are Vulcan themselves, from the Southern continent. In fact, one of the founders of the Vulcan Rite of the Church was just declared Blessed by the Holy See and selected a Doctor of the Church for her writings connecting the teachings of Surak to the Gospel message. I've read some of her work. It is quite fascinating, and dare I say, logical."

"There are non-human practitioners of your faith?" Seven asked, incredulous.

"Not all that uncommon, for a number of different religions that originated on Earth. Of course, there are also humans who practice a variety of alien religions as well."

Despite the knowledge she retained about various religions from the Borg, this was a subject Seven clearly wasn't familiar with. As she alluded to before, she knew Chakotay considered a person's spiritual nature of equal importance to their physical and psychological natures, perhaps even more so since he also believed the spirit lived on after death as Liam did. Her conversation with Liam had struck a nerve with her. In wanting to understand and relate to Chakotay better, she felt compelled to understand this aspect of sentience more fully. "It seems to me," she began tentatively, "if God did become human, as your faith suggests, might non-human species feel excluded?"

Liam smiled again. Seven noticed it completely changed his continence and wondered what she looked like to others when she smiled. She might have to experiment. Liam seemed to be in his element now. This interaction with her had seemed to lift a burden from his heart. "In the book of John," Liam began, but then hesitated. "It is one of the books in our Holy Scriptures."

Seven nodded. "Yes, I have heard of those writings."

"In the book of John, chapter 10, verse 16, Jesus says to those gathered 'And I have other sheep, that are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will heed my voice. So there shall be one flock, one shepherd.' That can be interpreted as a distinction between the Jews and Gentiles on Earth at the time of the Gospel, or it could be interpreted as a distinction between humans and non-humans at this time."

Again, Seven was more comfortable with science and disciplines of absolutes. Where something was proven or disproved and no interpretation was necessary. His earnestness was evident, however, and the proposition interesting.

"There is but one singular truth," Liam continued. "And it is as true for Vulcans, and Andorians, and all the other species of the Universe as it is for humans. That God is Love. Ipsum Esse!"

"The Being whose essence is existence," Chakotay remarked stepping up to the two of them. "Not in competition with creation but the source of it." He turned to Seven with a smile. "Are you encouraging Liam?"

Seven was startled by Chakotay's appearance and for a moment wasn't quite sure what to say in response. "We were having a discussion of concern to our spiritual well-being," she finally replied.

Chakotay looked at her thoughtfully for a moment and then nodded. "Well, Liam is a good one to talk to on that matter." He patted Liam on the back and added, "We've had our share of discussions over the years beneficial to our spiritual well-being, haven't we."

"Indeed my friend," Liam said. He looked back and forth between Chakotay and Seven, his smile from earlier still on his face. He hesitated for a moment, as if waiting to see what would happen. "Well then," he finally said. "I think I'm going to head back to the _Val Jean_. Talk to Cathal." He turned to Seven. "It was wonderful conversing with you Seven. I would love to pick up on our discussion sometime."

"As would I."

Chakotay turned more serious as Liam pulled his communicator out of his pocket. "It's been difficult for all of us," he said soberly.

"Cathal's a good man," Liam replied. "He'll be okay. We'll all be okay." He glanced once more between Chakotay and Seven before he moved off to be clear for transport back to the ship.

When Liam was gone, Chakotay sighed heavily. He then turned and looked at the ruined church and around the square. "What a waste," he whispered.

"Scans reveal Pax can recover," Seven offered. "This is Federation space. When the war ends, the colonists can return immediately." On Panora, a smaller world, the bombardment had been so severe, the atmosphere had heated and started to bleed off into space. They estimated in a decade, Panora would lose its atmosphere completely unless further terraforming was initiated. Other worlds they had surveyed also required some intervention of varying degrees to balance their ecosystems before recolonization.

"I'm drained and angry," Chakotay remarked. "But it's a different sort of anger than I had before. When I joined the Maquis, the anger drove me. I was protecting my home. Now…" He didn't finish, but the conflict inside him washed over his face.

Seven stepped closer and wanted to say something to comfort him as he had done to so many others. She wasn't sure what to say for these raw human emotions were unfamiliar to her. Captain Janeway and the Doctor and others would sometimes treat her differently because of this, as if she had the emotional maturity of a teenager. This was far from the truth and irked her when it happened. Perhaps at times she was too analytical when trying to fully embrace her emotions and better understand herself, but that is hardly immaturity. At this moment, however, Chakotay's emotions and well-being were of more importance to her. Her own feelings on this matter were powerful and acute and she realized with a start just how difficult it was to see him this way. Did she have feelings for him? Might she even be falling in love with him? Could it happen that fast?

"All I want to do is kill the Cardassians, just as Cathal did on Dorvan V," Chakotay suddenly said in a low voice. "But I know that won't bring any of this back. It won't change any of this, but it would change me. I would become my enemy."

He was clearly in pain. Not a physical pain, but an emotional and perhaps spiritual pain. He had alluded to it after Dorvan V and she had seen it somewhat in the past week, but with his guard now down, it was manifest. Seven didn't have the words, but she lifted her hand and placed it on Chakotay's shoulder. A gesture she had seen him do to comfort others. A gesture she hoped would convey to him that he wasn't alone.

Chakotay placed his hand on her shoulder and leaned towards her with his head down. It was as if he was using her as a support. Seven didn't say anything, nor do anything more. In that time, however, even just standing there with both of them not moving, she felt more human than she had ever felt before.

#

Author's note: About midway through the story. As with many of my stories, I wanted to explore that area between faith and science and their complimentary nature – and if all goes well and as planned it will eventually tie back to the concept and importance of family. I agree totally with Teya's analysis of C/7 as a couple, which she briefly explains in her profile and is what inspired me to write C/7 fanfiction in the first place. Hope you are still enjoying and please review if you get a chance.


	6. To the Edge of the Precipice

Chapter 6 – To the Edge of the Precipice

Chakotay sat down on his bed. It had been a long and emotional day on Pax and he, Ayala and Seven had just completed the report for Admiral Paris. Truth was, Seven compiled and wrote most of it, efficient as always. On _Voyager_ , he might have attributed that efficiency to her drone-like single mindedness, but now he knew better. That was just one side of a complex individual and she had much more depth than he had previously given her credit for. For a multitude of reasons, he had drawn closer to her these past few weeks, and he found he enjoyed her company. Was that why he opened up to her on the planet?

They were now at warp and on their way to a position near Deep Space Nine where they would dispatch a shuttle to the station to transmit the report back to Earth. No chances were being taken to track communications back to the _Val Jean_ , and so the public sub-space channels at Deep Space Nine were used with an encryption protocol supplied by Star Fleet Intelligence. The previous two times he and Seven had delivered the report, but this time he was letting Tom Paris go with Ayala. Tom had requested a chance to speak with his father, which seemed reasonable enough. Was it his imagination or did Seven look disappointed?

Chakotay sighed and stood back up. If he was going to sleep, he should get out of his clothes and get comfortable, but unfortunately his mind was on other things. There was growing restlessness amongst the crew. The chatter they intercepted over sub-space described what at first sounded like a terrible defeat for the Federation, but now talk of a renewed offensive against the Dominion. They hadn't detected any signs of Cardassian or Dominion activity in the Demilitarized Zone for several days now and indications pointed to the Dominion in retreat. Perhaps their mission to discover operations centers was no longer required and this would be the last report to Admiral Paris unless they continued their habitability survey of planets. The crew, however, was getting tired of seeing the destroyed and broken worlds. Chakotay was as well. There were decisions to be made regarding their next move, with or without new direction from the Admiral, and so Chakotay had called for an all-hands meeting in the morning when they arrived at their station keeping position near Deep Space Nine and before Tom and Ayala left. His thoughts were interrupted by a call from the bridge.

" _Captain, there's an incoming signal_ ," Cathal O'Donnell said over the comm.

That's strange. No one but Star Fleet Intelligence should know where they were. "Can you identify the source?" Chakotay asked, suspecting the answer.

" _It's encrypted with the codes given to us by Star Fleet Intelligence_ ," Cathal replied.

"I'll be right there," Chakotay said and moved quickly to the door. His quarters were on the top deck just a few steps from the bridge. When he arrived, Cathal was at the operations console and Tom Paris at the piloting station. Both Ayala and Seven were also there, probably having stopped off after their meeting that had just completed. Chakotay stepped up to Cathal. "Seal the bridge and put it up on the screen."

Cathal nodded. The doors slide shut behind them and then the main screen filled with static. Unlike _Voyager_ , the _Val Jean_ 's screen was embedded in the front console between the operations and piloting stations. The front half of the bridge was encircled with actual windows where the stars at warp streaked by. After a few seconds, the image cleared and Admiral Paris came into focus. He was at his desk at Star Fleet Intelligence. It appeared to be the middle of the night, similar to ship time.

"Good evening Captain," Admiral Paris said. "There's been a development."

"Evidently," Seven muttered to herself, but loud enough to hear clearly. Chakotay chuckled at her bluntness and the corner of Admiral Paris' lip turned up slightly, but quickly his face hardened.

"You may have already heard of our losses in the Chin'toka system and the defeat of the Cardassian rebellion," Admiral Paris continued. "During the battle in the Chin'toka system, Breen Confederacy vessels used an energy-dampening field that crippled our fleet. Fortunately, two ships were unaffected by the new weapon. A Klingon vessel and _Voyager_. It turns out the multi-phasic shield modifications made to _Voyager_ countered the effects of the Breen weapon."

"The same modifications we made to the _Val Jean_ ," Chakotay commented.

"Precisely. The Klingons had done something to their ship's engines that achieved the same results. We made similar changes to the rest of the alliance fleet and have been on the offensive ever since."

"We've intercepted communications to that effect, but weren't aware of the Cardassian rebellion's defeat."

Admiral Paris frowned slightly before continuing. "There is still some resistance, but the rebellion has effectively been crushed."

Chakotay noticed Cathal turn to Tom to say something, but then he must have thought better of it. Cathal had never believed there were Cardassians opposed to the Dominion and the war, despite Admiral Paris' updates. His anger apparently didn't allow room for any good thoughts about the Cardassians.

"The Dominion has consolidated its forces about Cardassia Prime," Admiral Paris continued. "The Alliance has decided to assemble as many ships as possible and carry the fight directly to this stronghold. One last battle to push the Dominion out of the Alpha Quadrant. The attack fleet will be departing soon from Deep Space Nine."

This was a significant development. The war might be over sooner than Chakotay had thought. "And where do we fit in Admiral?" he asked.

Admiral Paris paused. Whatever it was, he didn't like it. "Star Fleet, Imperial Guard, the Klingons, the Romulans, and ships from more than a half a dozen other Alpha Quadrant worlds are assembling for this battle. I know the _Val Jean_ wouldn't be your first choice for a vessel in such a fight, but I wanted to give you the option."

It felt to Chakotay as if those on the bridge were holding their breath. "To join the fleet?" Chakotay asked, just to make sure he understood the Admiral's suggestion.

Admiral Paris nodded, drew in a breath and let it out. "Considering the fate of the rest of the Maquis, I was thinking…" His voice trailed off, but Chakotay understood what he meant and appreciated the sentiment. Admiral Paris wanted to give Chakotay and his crew the opportunity to be the Maquis representative in the greater alliance fleet. A token, to be sure, but perhaps symbolic of the healing of wounds between the Federation and Maquis cause. Admiral Paris nodded upon seeing Chakotay's understanding.

"Thank you Admiral, I'll discuss it with the crew," Chakotay replied thickly.

"I contacted you now, breaking sub-space silence, because you'll have to increase your speed to maximum warp to arrive before the fleet departs. If you do join the fleet, contact Admiral Chivens on the _Maxwell_. I've informed him of everything. You'd be under his command."

"I understand."

"It is likely there will be heavy casualties on both sides. The Alliance is committed to seeing this through to the end. This is it. We must succeed, at all cost."

Chakotay nodded.

Admiral Paris again paused. Something else seemed to be weighing heavily on his mind. An inner conflict played out across his face. "Godspeed Captain," he finally said. He then adjusted his attention and looked to where Tom Paris was sitting at the pilot's station. "Tom."

"Yes sir?"

"I love you son," Admiral Paris choked out.

Tom looked stunned. "I love you too Dad," he managed just before the connection terminated. To Chakotay it was as if they felt they might be saying goodbye to each other for the last time.

#

The _Val Jean_ 's course was immediately adjusted and the speed increased to maximum warp. It was still the middle of the night ship time and they were five hours from Deep Space Nine, but the all-hands meeting was moved up to inform the crew of the news. Everyone quickly assembled in the cargo bay with the ship left on auto-pilot for the short interval. Chakotay and Ayala stood in front facing a semicircle of faces that comprised the rest.

"We were just contacted by Admiral Paris. As we suspected, Star Fleet and the others in the Alliance did suffer a defeat at Chin'toka," Chakotay said, confirming the rumors, "but they have since rallied and are pressing the Dominion back to Cardassia Prime. As we speak, an alliance fleet is preparing an assault on this last Dominion stronghold in the Alpha Quadrant."

"What can we do in this heap?" Dalby interrupted. "We'd be able to offer the Cardassians and Jem'Hadar another target, for a few seconds anyway, but that's about it."

"Our new multi-phasic shields will help," B'Elanna offered.

"It's true," Cathal said. "The shields also apparently protect us from some sort of new Breen weapon."

Dalby shrugged. " _Our_ weapons won't be worth a damn in a fight."

"There's more we can do than simply add our firepower," Tom piped in. "We're small, maneuverable, and relatively stealthy. We'll have a lot more than a few seconds."

The assembled group considered this and Chakotay nodded. "We've been up against Galor-class ships before and did some damage," he added.

"What about the Cardassian rebellion we heard about?" Marina Jor asked.

Chakotay shook his head. "The Admiral informed us it has been crushed. He didn't provide any details beyond that."

Various crew members exchanged looks.

"Did the Admiral tell you how he expected us to contribute?" Dalby asked.

"No," Chakotay responded. "He was simply giving us an opportunity to join the fleet. As Maquis. As some of the last remaining Maquis."

There were now some murmurs amongst the crew and then T'Vora stepped forward. "Captain, what are _your_ orders?"

Chakotay could always count on T'Vora's composure and decisiveness. She stood there serene and attentive awaiting his response. "I wanted to gauge the desires of the rest of you first," he responded.

"But what are your desires?" T'Vora persisted.

Chakotay looked down. He had been turning this over in his mind ever since the communication with Admiral Paris. He knew exactly what he wanted and what his decision would be. "Anyone who wishes can disembark at Deep Space Nine. No questions will be asked and I would harbor no ill will if that is what you choose. For me, I plan to take the _Val Jean_ into this battle even if I'm the only one remaining on this ship."

The hushed silence hung in the air for a short time, and then T'Vora spoke. "You will not be alone," she said simply. Her husband, who was beside her, nodded solemnly. It broke the spell. Others indicated their intention to remain aboard as well. There were some who seemed unconvinced but remained quiet.

Ayala stepped forward. "Let's get back to sleep then. From the sound of it, we're going to have our hands full soon enough." Ayala apparently had decided the meeting was over. He turned and smiled at Chakotay and then started to lead everyone out of the cargo bay.

As they all left, Chakotay shook his head. Ayala and he had history, and if he had thought about it, he would have realized Ayala's mind had been set as well. And others, of course. He should have never implied he might be going into this alone. They had been through too much together. They were family.

The cargo bay cleared out quickly until only he and Seven remained. Of late, it seemed to often end up this way. What would she decide, he wondered. She was looking at him intently and must have read the question on his face.

"You need not ask me whether I plan to remain aboard the _Val Jean_ or disembark at Deep Space Nine," she stated. "Besides, it would be impossible for you to maintain continuous accountability if we separate."

It took a moment for Chakotay to recall the term… from when he signed her out of the detention center. That had been a fortunate circumstance, despite his feelings at the time. It seemed like a lifetime ago, and yet it was only about three weeks before. He smiled and Seven smiled back. Not a big smile, but enough to be a surprise.

"I don't know what I'd do without you," Chakotay quipped.

"Nor do I," Seven responded evenly.

#

Chakotay and the others assembled on the _Val Jean_ 's bridge stared open mouthed out the windows. The space around Deep Space Nine was crowded with ships. In every direction, the ships moved in an intricate dance about the station. Star Fleet vessels of all designs, Klingon battle cruisers, Romulan warbirds. It was a veritable display of Alpha Quadrant firepower.

"Squeak," Tom Paris joked. He glanced back to Chakotay who was standing in front of the command chair at the rear of the bridge. "I feel like a mouse in a large animal zoo."

"Impressive," Seven stated, clearly fascinated by the spectacle.

"Cathal, locate the _Maxwell_ and hail them," Chakotay said, stepping back and sitting down in his command chair.

Cathal laughed. "I'll try," he responded. "Wait, _we're_ being hailed."

That was quick. "On screen."

Instead of Admiral Chivens, however, Captain Janeway appeared before them. "There was a time when I was ordered to track down a certain Maquis ship," she said with a smile.

"We came and found you this time."

Janeway nodded. "Admiral Paris informed me you might be joining us. I might say that fortunately we're not in the Delta Quadrant this time, but I'm not so sure."

Chakotay felt the same way. "It's good to see you," he said. He had truly missed her friendship and counsel. They had only a brief conversation back on Earth before he had left for Mars to take command of the _Val Jean_. Seeing her now helped ease his nerves somewhat.

"And you," Janeway said and then turned her attention to Seven. "How are you holding up Seven?"

"Adequately," Seven replied. She then seemed to reconsider her response and added, "I'm striving to keep Captain Chakotay in line." It must be Seven's attempt at friendly banter.

Chakotay laughed and Janeway raised her eyebrows. "Well now, there's hope for you yet Chakotay. Promise me one thing Seven."

"What is that Captain?"

"Don't let this _Val Jean_ have the same fate as the first one."

Chakotay knew Seven was well aware of what happened at the Caretaker's array. Instead of responding to Captain Janeway directly, Seven turned to him and frowned, as if to say, 'I'll be keeping an eye on you.'

"Then keep _Voyager_ out of trouble this time," Chakotay responded to Janeway, and winked to Seven.

"I'll try," Janeway laughed, but then turned more serious. "I'd invite you over for dinner, another of my grandmother's special recipes, but we move out within the hour."

Dinner? They'd have to sync their ship-time to that of the fleet, Chakotay mused. "A rain check then."

"Yes, a rain check," Kathryn replied thoughtfully. It felt as if there was both too much to say and nothing more to be said. Those on both ships had until recently spent over five years together. It was very much possible many of those on the _Val Jean_ and _Voyager_ would not live to finish the day. It made little sense to dwell on it. It was nice to be together again. "Well then. Good luck to you all," Kathryn finally said.

"And to all of you," Chakotay replied. They exchanged a quick nod full of meaning before the transmission ended. What would the day bring at Cardassia? The future of the Federation and the Alpha Quadrant hung in the balance. They would all find out soon enough.

Chakotay turned to Seven. "I don't know about dinner, but I could sure go for a nice breakfast before we move out. Interested?"

Seven didn't hesitate. "I would be happy to comply."

#

Author's note: Thank you to those who have left reviews. In response to Valkara's review of the last chapter, Seven and Liam were expressing their thoughts and I don't think they were being preachy and they never claimed atheists worship anything. Rather, Seven mused that if the definition of religion was a set of beliefs concerning the cause, nature, and purpose of the universe and foundation for an objective morality, it might be true that everyone must practice some sort of religion, organized or not. I think Seven was using one of the definitions for religion in Webster's dictionary, "a cause, principle, or system of beliefs held to with ardor and faith" and one of the definitions for faith "firm belief in something for which there is no proof ." I imagine she would say atheism thus fits the definition of a religion. Also isn't atheism acceptable to some existing religions and so an "atheistic religion" is not necessarily an oxymoron?

Also, regarding the _Val Jean_. I know it perhaps should be _Valjean_ from the character's name in Les Miserables, but the Star Trek Memory Alpha site lists Chakotay's ship as the _Val Jean_ and so I used that in my previous stories and this one as well to maintain multiverse continuity…

Anywho, the story moves on and now we're at the eve of the Battle of Cardassia. Please leave a review and let me know what you think.


	7. The Battle of Cardassia

Chapter 7 – The Battle of Cardassia

Admiral Owen Paris had his eyes closed at his desk when he heard someone enter the office. He lingered in thought for a moment and then opened his eyes and turned to see who it was.

"I'm sorry to disturb you Admiral," his Bajoran aide said. She was holding a PADD and hesitated by the entrance, apparently unsure whether to proceed in or retreat back to her desk.

"That's quite alright Talia. What do you have there?"

The Star Fleet Lieutenant glanced at the PADD in her hand as if she was surprised to be holding it. She then shook her head and frowned. "Follow-up reports from the Chin'toka system that you requested. It's nothing important, really, considering…"

Owen nodded in understanding. He picked up the cup in front of him and finished off the lukewarm coffee. It was morning, but he hadn't slept the night before. He had been restless and anxious about the upcoming attack on Cardassia. There was little he could do now more than 50 light years away. He glanced at the chronometer on his desk. Talia was right, it was just about that time, perhaps this very minute the battle was starting.

"Were you praying just now?" Talia said, interrupting his thoughts.

Owen hesitated. "I was thinking of my son," he finally said. Was he praying? If there was ever a time to start praying again, now would be it. Ever since his wife died many years ago, he hadn't given it much thought. "He's on a… Maquis ship. Headed for Cardassia Prime."

"I've been praying to the Prophets," Talia said moving into the office a few steps. "Some vedeks say this confrontation has been foretold and will mark a turning point for the Galaxy, although the outcome is uncertain." She frowned and looked down. "Many of my friends are in the fleet. I'm both frustrated and relieved to be here on Earth. But, I feel like I _should_ be there."

Owen knew exactly how she felt, and of course Bajor was much closer to Cardassia than Earth. The Bajorans had more at stake perhaps in the outcome of this particular battle. "We've done our part," he replied, not sounding as convincing as he wanted. "We've given them every scrap of information we have concerning what to expect when they arrive in system. Now, all we can do is wait." Owen glanced again at the chronometer on his desk. "Why don't we listen in on the fleet comm channel?"

Talia appeared surprised, but quickly moved fully into the office and sat at one of the chairs across from Admiral Paris. She put the PADD on the desk as if discarding it. After tapping out the correct sequence of characters on his terminal, the speakers in Owen's office began to hiss with static and then compensated. For a moment he thought perhaps the connection had not been made correctly, but then the silence was broken.

" _Detection of ships. Twelve, twelve, minus two_."

" _Federation Fleet,_ _stay in formation and continue to the planet_."

That would be Admiral Antonich. He was Star Fleet's lead in the three-pronged assault. In all likelihood, the _Val Jean_ was with them along with the Imperial Guard and other Federation ships.

" _More detections. Ten, fourteen, five. Minus five, eleven, zero_."

" _Leave them for the Klingons_."

" _Birds of prey decloking. Romulan fleet has commenced their photon torpedo barrage_."

There was a brief moment of silence and Admiral Owen Paris and Lieutenant Wen Talia exchanged a quick look. They were bystanders, listening in with undoubtedly millions of others across the Federation. The clear voice of Admiral Antonich broke the silence.

" _Star Fleet Command. We have engaged the Dominion Fleet_."

#

Tom Paris executed a roll and then aligned the _Val Jean_ such that its weapons had a clear shot to the ventral exhaust port of the nearest Galor-class Cardassian frigate. It was like riding a hovercycle, the maneuvers coming back to him that he once executed during his brief time in the Maquis. Immediately, the _Val Jean_ 's phasers fired and impacted the shields, but only for a few seconds before they passed optimal distance and were again maneuvering.

"Come on Seven, I'm give you clear shots," Tom said in frustration.

"I've been on target over sixty-two percent of the time," Seven replied evenly. "During the Maquis resistance, the average was no better than thirty-seven percent in much more benign conditions."

"And it's a matter of luck to do any damage," Chakotay added. "We're keeping them busy anyway. Come around for another pass."

"Sir," Kenneth Dalby said at operations. "The _Maxwell_ is requesting we concentrate our attention on the lead Cardassian vessel."

Chakotay nodded. "Understood. Tom, forget this one and move to the lead vessel."

"Aye," Tom replied and started adjusting course. Suddenly the _Val Jean_ was hit, but the shields held.

"You turned into that one," Seven remarked. "No damage."

Tom smiled. Seven was getting a bit snarky of late. And what was it between her and Chakotay anyway? There were five of them on the bridge. Chakotay was in the command chair, Seven at weapons control, Dalby at operations, he was at the piloting station, and Marina Jor was standing just behind him as his backup. In fact, it was technically Marina's shift, but Tom had been asked to pilot the _Val Jean_ during the battle. He was, after all, the best pilot on this ship. Around them, hundreds of other vessels moved about in their deadly dance with phasers, particle beams, energy lances, and photon torpedoes sputtering between them. They were all a distraction that had to be ignored if he was to pilot correctly. It was a wonder they weren't hit by stray fire more often.

"The _Valiant_ has been destroyed," Dalby reported. " _Maxwell_ taking heavy fire from the Cardassian and Breen ships."

"Coming up on the lead Cardassian vessel," Tom said. "Let's see if you can up that percentage Seven. The Borg wouldn't settle for sixty-two percent, would they?"

"Please endeavor to fly straight this time," Seven replied.

Chakotay smiled and leaned forward on his command chair. "Seven, empty the banks on this pass. Let's get their attention."

Tom executed another roll to again align the _Val Jean_ correctly. Phasers fired establishing a purple-white tether between the _Val Jean_ and Cardassian ship. The firing continued after optimal firing range passed but finally stopped as the _Val Jean_ banked away.

"Two minutes to recharge," Seven said.

"Tom, loop around and get into position in two minutes if you can."

"Will do."

"Cardassian lead vessel breaking off to follow us," Seven said.

" _Maxwell_ acknowledges our attack and asks that we keep it up."

"Even a mosquito can be a bother," Chakotay remarked with a frown.

Tom grinned. He wasn't too fond of being that mosquito, after all, but they were doing the best they could. All about them individual battles continued to play out, theirs but a tiny part of the battle far above Cardassia Prime.

#

Liam O'Donnell held the rosary in his hand but couldn't completely concentrate on the current mystery. Once in a while, the inertial dampers wouldn't be enough to compensate for the extreme accelerations of the _Val Jean_ 's maneuvering, and he would feel a lurch or sway. Worse was when they heard weapons impact the shields, but so far, they had sustained no damage and had no casualties. He glanced about sick-bay. It was his job to tend to the wounded when and if they arrived. With him was T'Vora who had some medical training and would serve as his nurse. She was sitting on the floor with her eyes closed in meditation. Before her was an IDIC medallion. She must have sensed Liam's gaze, for she opened her eyes and looked in his direction.

"Unable to concentrate?" T'Vora asked.

Liam gestured about him, and as if on cue, the _Val Jean_ shook from another impact on the shields. "I suppose I don't have the discipline of a Vulcan," he remarked.

"Nonsense," T'Vora replied. "I have witnessed such discipline in you and many other humans that equal that of a Vulcan. We are not that much different, after all."

Liam shrugged. "Tell me about your meditation technique."

T'Vora motioned to a spot on the floor across from her and Liam moved over and mimicked her position. T'Vora then picked up the medallion. "Surak's doctrine of logic established many techniques in order to keep the Vulcan's tempestuous emotions under control. In some, you concentrate on a particular item or thought, such as a flame or even something like this." She held out the medallion for Liam to inspect. It was a round silver disk with an offset hole. On the disk was a wedge of brushed silver and a jewel at the tip that fell in the center of the hole. The jewel was clear and was possibly a diamond. "A gift from my husband when we were betrothed. Are you familiar with the IDIC?" T'Vora asked.

"I am," Liam replied. It was exquisitely made and quite beautiful. He had almost acquired one for himself on a visit to Vulcan long ago. "Infinite diversity in infinite combinations."

"Symbolizing the elements that create truth and beauty."

Liam nodded. He had been reading about Surak in recent days and the writings of Blessed T'Mir.

"What is that you are holding?" T'Vora asked.

"It is called a rosary," Liam said holding it up. It had been his father's. Each bead was made from a hard dark wood from a coniferous tree indigenous to Pax. The other adornments were made of silver. "There are five sets of beads around the loop that symbolize prayers to be said while meditating on a particular mystery of my faith. And the crucifix here is an image of Jesus on the cross."

T'Vora studied the rosary and nodded. "A cousin of mine described this artifact to me once."

"I suppose it is used in a similar way as your IDIC. To help one focus in meditation and prayer."

"Fascinating," T'Vora replied. "Perhaps one day you can describe it to me more fully. For the present, you wished for me to discuss a particular meditation technique I use. This day, I was focusing on a thought. I was imagining myself on a turbulent ocean where I had control over the waves and through concentration could exert my will and calm the storm."

Fitting, considering their current circumstances.

"Would you like me to lead you in a meditation?" T'Vora asked.

"Yes please," Liam responded. He placed the rosary on the floor between them as he had seen before and T'Vora replaced her IDIC next to it.

#

Cathal O'Donnell glanced back at the warp core for what felt like the hundredth time. He was Suvik's back-up in engineering, and as such, had maddingly little to do. At the beginning of the battle, it had been relatively quiet down in engineering, but as the systems were strained, more and more needed to be tended to or fixed. Regulating energy distribution, ensuring the impulse engines and thrusters were working optimally, monitoring the weapons.

" _B'Elanna, we need more power for the phasers_ ," Chakotay barked over the comm.

"We need that power for the shields," B'Elanna snapped back to no one in particular, and then engaged the comm. "We'll do what we can," she replied and cut it back off. She turned to Mariah Henley who was Jarvin's back-up at the junction. "Mariah, go back into the crawlspace and divert some power from life support. Control lock-outs won't allow us to do it from the board."

Henley nodded and disappeared into the entrance behind the junction. Near her was Ayala at auxiliary control. If something happened to everyone on the bridge, he would take command and control the ship from there. If it came to that, however, there wouldn't me much else to do but try to get away. Just after Henley disappeared into the crawlspace, the _Val Jean_ shuttered. Several direct hits on the shields. It felt like target practice for the Cardassians.

"What the hell are they doing up there!" B'Elanna yelled. She approached Cathal and Suvik. "I don't care what they say. Overload the shields and rotate frequencies." Suvik nodded crisply and did as he was instructed. B'Elanna continued to pace about engineering. "Best pilot my ass," she muttered and then went back to monitor Jarvin's board.

Suddenly, there was another hit on the shields, more violent than any before. When it was over, there was an interval when everyone in engineering looked at one another waiting for decompression alarms or some other catastrophe. Ready to spring into action, but it didn't come. Instead, Chakotay's voice came back over the comm. " _Cathal, get up to the bridge now. Liam, prepare for wounded_."

"Acknowledged," Cathal replied, caught B'Elanna's eye and then sprinted to the main shaft. She looked concerned, no doubt wondering if something had happened to Tom. Cathal climbed up quickly and made it to the top deck just before Chell and Gerron arrived. They were carrying Dalby between them and getting ready to descend the shaft down to sick-bay. Dalby was unconscious with burns on his face and hands and his shirt half scorched.

"Careful," Chell said absently when he passed.

In a few steps, he arrived at the bridge. Tom was at the piloting station and Marina was at operations. Clearly the console at operations had malfunctioned with a power surge and much of it was damaged. The damaged areas still glistened with a fire retardant.

"Cathal, take over at ops," Chakotay said. "Marina, I want you over Tom's shoulder."

Without another word, Marina and Cathal switched out. The panel was a mess. Cathal quickly assessed that Marina had been trying to bypass some of the effected controls and continued with that tactic. Enough of the panel remained undamaged that he was confident he could manage. Fortunately these old ships were built with multiple redundant control circuits.

"Cathal, get back in contact with the fleet," Chakotay ordered and then turned to Tom. "Keep shadowing the _Maxwell_ as best you can. Seven, give him coordinates." He then pushed the comm on the arm of his chair. "Engineering, damage assessment."

There was a slight delay and Cathal could only imagine what B'Elanna was saying before turning on the comm. " _Some damage to secondary systems due to the surge. We'll manage_."

"The fleet is moving closer to the planet," Seven stated. "Mister Paris, change your heading twelve degrees starboard."

Cathal kept working at the ops station to reacquire the Star Fleet comm channel. There were multiple frequencies for each fighting component of the fleet, although a record of all the communications between ships were also recorded for review. If he was lucky, those messages would be saved in a buffer and available once he completed the repairs. Finally, the undamaged screen at his station filled up with the latest comm traffic. "We're back in business," he said with satisfaction.

"Good," Chakotay replied. "Ping the _Maxwell_ , explain our situation and see what's happening."

Cathal scanned through the text. There was so much back and forth, it was hard to make sense of it all. Fortunately, the computer highlighted key phrases and items that might pertain to the _Val Jean_. "Maneuvering towards Cardassia Prime," Cathal finally relayed, but then something caught his eye. "Wait." He scanned back through the messages to catch it again. He turned to face Chakotay. " _Voyager_ has been damaged and is requesting assistance."

"Where?" Chakotay asked.

"They were assigned to the right flank," Marina said. "The component under the _Stockholm_."

"I've located them," Seven said from weapons control. "They're adrift and moving out of the orbital plane."

Chakotay rubbed his chin and seemed to make a decision. "Give the coordinates to Tom and move there at best speed. Cathal, inform the _Maxwell_ we're breaking off to assist _Voyager_."

"Aye sir."

Cathal hadn't expected anything less. In space battles, typically damaged vessels would be tended to after the hostilities ended. There were enough of them out there now, either damaged or destroyed. Chakotay was loyal, however, and Captain Janeway had earned his trust and respect. It seemed right to go to their aide now. The number of ships thinned considerably as they approached _Voyager_. Most of the fighting had moved off closer to Cardassia Prime and so they were relatively safe for the time being. Cathal attempted to ping _Voyager_ on several frequencies, but received nothing in return.

"Hail them."

"I'm trying," Cathal responded. "There seems to be a problem."

"I'm detecting fluctuations in their warp core," Seven said. "It's possible a warp core breach is eminent, but the readings are inconclusive."

"I've got something," Cathal finally said. "Hailing frequencies are open."

" _Val Jean_ to _Voyager_ ," Chakotay said immediately. "What is your status?"

There was a short delay. "Commander… Captain. This is Lieutenant Commander Carey in Engineering. We've taken heavy damage and have lost contact with the bridge. Comm systems are disabled throughout the ship. We have a number of wounded and the Doctor is offline."

"What's the status of the warp core?"

"Stabilized for now, but we're having intermittent problems with the plasma injectors. I'm undermanned and we have serious problems throughout the ship."

"Stand by." Chakotay said and turned to Seven. "How safe are we here?"

Seven studied the sensors for a time, perhaps gauging the movements of nearby ships. "The main fight is moving closer to the planet. There are several ships from both sides still in the vicinity, but they appear to be staying clear."

"Good." Chakotay replied. He again punched the comm on his chair. "Bridge to Engineering. B'Elanna, we're next to _Voyager_ and they are heavily damaged. Take a few of your folks over and help Carey as best you can."

" _Understood_."

"Bridge to sickbay."

" _Yes Captain_?"

"How's Dalby?"

" _We've treated his burns. He's still unconscious but has been stabilized and should make a full recovery_."

"Good. T'Vora can take it from here. Meet up with B'Elanna and beam over to _Voyager_. They have wounded."

" _Aye Captain_."

Chakotay then turned to Tom. "You were our medic for a time on _Voyager_."

"Something I try not to think about," Tom replied.

"Meet up with B'Elanna as well and assist Liam. Marina, you take over here."

Without another word, Tom moved quickly off the bridge and Marina took his place. Cathal wondered if it was wise to send so many people off the _Val Jean_ to _Voyager_ , but then reconsidered. Those were his friends over there. A few short weeks ago, they were all he knew. Even now, on the _Val Jean_ , he was with a subset of those he had spent over five years with. No, it was fitting. They had a short respite and drifted alongside _Voyager_. Cathal monitored communication traffic while Seven kept an eye on their surroundings. Eventually, however, their presence was noticed by the enemy.

"Chakotay, There are two Cardassian destroyers moving to our position."

Chakotay sighed heavily. "How long to intercept."

"A few minutes perhaps," Seven responded. She then examined the display more intently. A Jem'Hadar battle cruiser is also on an intercept course. Five minutes at current speed."

This was it. In the Maquis, they would steer clear of the destroyers. There was little a ship like the _Val Jean_ could do against one. Their only experience with the Jem'Hadar had been during the battle today, although the outcome was equally certain. They had some time to get their people and perhaps some of the _Voyager_ crew back and get out of there. Cathal knew, however, that wasn't in the cards. Their fate was intertwined with that of _Voyager_. It all felt eerily familiar.

"Put ourselves between _Voyager_ and the Cardassians," Chakotay ordered and stood up.

"What are you going to do?" Marina asked, sounding nervous to hear the answer.

"The Cardassians have stopped their approach," Seven said and glanced up. The destroyers were close enough to now see clearly out the front windows. They hung there side by side, the battle about the planet clearly visible far behind them

"What are they waiting for?" Marina wondered aloud. Time felt like it was standing still.

Chakotay gritted his teeth. It had a long time since Cathal had seen him that way. It was just like the days of the Maquis. They were truly back. Again, facing down the Cardassians against incredible odds. Those devils who had taken everything. This was as it should be.

"Come on!" Chakotay shouted.

#

Author's note: I imagine Chakotay's last words here delivered in the same way as when King Fergus was facing down Mor'du while protecting his family in the beginning of Brave. Thanks for the reviews. The Battle of Cardassia continues in the next chapter.


	8. The Tide Turns

Chapter 8 – The Tide Turns

"Weapons on both Cardassian destroyers are charging!" Seven said. The destroyers loomed in front of the _Val Jean_. The wedge shaped bow and long body made the vessels appear like snakes seemingly ready to pounce. Seven turned to Chakotay. There was something she wanted to tell him before it was too late. Before she could speak, however, the destroyers' weapons discharged. Everyone on the bridge flinched, preparing for the inevitable impact and hoping the multi-phasic shields would hold, but instead the disrupter beams completely missed the _Val Jean_ and _Voyager_.

"What happened?" Chakotay asked. The Cardassian destroyers were now moving, but more tangentially to their position.

It took only a moment for Seven to recover. She studied the sensors. "Impact on the Jem'Hadar battle cruiser. It's returning fire."

They all turned back to the view out front and witnessed the latest volley. As they watched, the firefight between the three vessels intensified. Energy lances split the space in two. Marina adjusted the _Val Jean_ 's position slightly to allow those on the bridge to continue to view as the three star ships closed in on one another. The Jem'Hadar's weapons were obviously more powerful, and both Cardassian shields and ships were taking a pounding but continued to advance.

"There's a lot of communication traffic," Cathal said. He had apparently stopped viewing the spectacle and was studying his remaining screen. He also had a communication relay in his ear. "The Cardassians have apparently switched sides. All Cardassian ships are now engaged against the Jem'Hadar."

Seven glanced down at her own sensors. It was true. Multiple confrontations between Cardassian and Jem'Hadar and Breen vessels were evident. Much of the fighting was still close to the planet, although several groups of warring ships were moving off as well in clusters.

"Oh my God," Cathal muttered, interrupting Seven's analysis. She looked up to see Cathal looking back at them, his face white.

"What is it Cathal?" Chakotay said with concern. The man looked physically ill from whatever it was he just read. It took him a moment to recover.

"Entire Cardassian cities are being destroyed by the Jem'Hadar," Cathal replied in disbelief. "Millions of Cardassians are being killed. Right now. It's… genocide."

Flashes of light from outside diverted their attention back to the battle between the two Cardassian destroyers and the Jem'Hadar battle cruiser. They were so close together, the bow of one of the destroyers was now impacting the battle cruiser's shields. It quickly became evident the Cardassian's strategy. Knowing their weapons were inferior, the destroyer aimed to ram through the battle cruiser's shield and crash into the smaller vessel. The battle played out in slow motion before them. Seven observed as the battle cruiser turned to escape, but the second destroyer had cut off its escape route. The Jem'Hadar vessel's shields eventually failed. Suddenly there was another bright flash and both the Jem'Hadar vessel and the impacting Cardassian destroyer broke in two. Some ordinance must have detonated on one of the ships. Perhaps several photon torpedoes at once. Seven glanced back down to sensors. Something odd caught her eye. "I'm detecting an energy spike. Multiple transports in progress."

From below, possibly Engineering by the sound of it, they heard weapons fire. Then the _Val Jean_ lurched forward towards the wreckage of the two ships and the decompression alarms sounded. It couldn't have been debris from the explosion causing damage to the _Val Jean_ for Seven had detected no impact. She didn't sense any change in atmospheric pressure that would indicate a hull breach.

"Compensating," Marina shouted as she fired thrusters to reduce their speed. The alarms cut off seconds after they started.

" _Bridge, this is Engineering_ ," Ayala's voice came over the comm. " _Two Jem'Hadar warriors beamed over into the cargo bay. We exchanged fire, sealed the bay, and blew the hatch_."

"Is everyone okay down there?" Chakotay replied.

" _Chell got hit in the shoulder, but it's nothing serious. What's going on?_ "

"The Cardassian fleet appears to have switched sides. One of their destroyers and a Jem'Hadar battle cruiser just collided near us."

Seven examined sensors more closely. The Jem'Hadar warriors must have abandoned their vessel when its fate became apparent. She detected a half dozen Jem'Hadar life signs in _Voyager_ , just outside Engineering. "Chakotay, there are six Jem'Hadar on _Voyager_."

"Open a channel to _Voyager_ ," Chakotay barked.

"Channel open," Cathal quickly responded.

"Joe, are you guys okay over there?"

There was a pause and some static. "This is Janeway. We just got our comm operating again, and a good thing too. Thanks for sending over B'Elanna and the others Chakotay. Engineering is sealed and security is converging on the Jem'Hadar intruders. They're isolated and we should be fine. How are you doing?"

"We had two beam into our cargo bay, but they were ejected into space when Ayala blew the hatch. Is _Voyager_ mobile so we can clear the area?"

"Working on it," Janeway responded. "I'll contact you shortly when we're ready to move."

"Acknowledged."

Seven frowned. Only eight Jem'Hadar warriors accounted for. The bulk of the battle cruiser's crew must have either perished in the explosion or beamed to a different location. If the latter, there was only one other possibility. She scanned the remaining Cardassian destroyer. It was severely damaged with life support barely functioning although weapons systems still appeared to be operational. It was a testament to Cardassian priorities. In addition, there were troubling signs that the warp core was becoming unstable. Near the stern of the vessel she discovered what she was looking for. Sure enough, within their Engineering section, were thirty-six Jem'Hadar lifesigns. Worse, there were no Cardassian lifesigns in that section. At least none left alive. "Chaktaoy, it appears the Jem'Hadar are attempting to take over the remaining destroyer. I detect a large group in their Engineering section."

Chakotay turned back to Cathal. "Hail the Cardassians."

Cathal worked for a short time and shook his head. "They're not answering. Their comm might be down."

"Keep trying," Chakotay said and then turned to Seven. "Can you monitor the movements of the Jem'Hadar about the Cardassian ship?"

Seven could see the bulk of warriors assembling in what must be a central corridor within the destroyer. It wasn't too hard to guess their intentions. "It appears they are going to work their way forward to the bridge."

"Those on the bridge might be unaware they've been boarded," Marina suggested. "If their communications and sensors are down."

"We have to warn them somehow," Chakotay responded. "If the Jem'Hadar do take control of the ship, they can turn the weapons of that destroyer on us and _Voyager_." He appeared to be thinking of something. The obvious answer was to beam over to the destroyer and tell them directly. Seven knew that look and was about to protest when Chakotay confirmed her suspicions, "I'm going to beam over to the Cardassian vessel."

Seven redirected her thoughts. "And I will accompany you." Chakotay turned to her shaking his head. He appeared to be about to protest her suggestion when he too was interrupted.

"I've got to go over too," Cathal stated. "Chaktaoy, I've got to go." Cathal must have stood and was now beside Chakotay and Seven. An image of him as a young boy flashed through Seven's mind. It was a memory of Chakotay's, a residual from their mental link from five years before. Seven had become more aware of these memories that were buried in her own mind in the past few weeks as she had drawn closer to Chakotay. It was from a time on Dorvan V when Chakotay and Cathal were both children. Pain and anguish and determination. Chakotay and Cathal had known each other a long time. She knew immediately what Chakotay's response would be.

Chakotay punched the comm. "Bridge to Engineering. Ayala, get up here and take command. Seven, Cathal and I are beaming over to the Cardassian destroyer to warn them of the Jem'Hadar who have boarded their vessel. The Cardassians' comm appears to be down."

" _Understood_."

Cathal seemed to relax somewhat. Seven was well aware of his attitude towards the Cardassians up until this time, but the revelation of the genocide that was occurring on Cardassia Prime seemed to have affected him deeply. "Should we be armed?" Cathal asked as they waited for Ayala to arrive.

Chakotay shook his head. "No. We arrive unarmed. If they do attack, don't resist. One of us needs to convey our message and make them believe it."

Seven wondered if perhaps there was a better way to convey the message. Having three Maquis beaming onto the bridge might seem provocative to the Cardassians, and they often fired first and asked questions later. On the other hand, arriving at all knowing the risk would reinforce the veracity of the message and might work in their favor. Ayala then arrived on the bridge interrupting her thoughts.

"Keep a transporter lock on us if you can," Chakotay said. "When _Voyager_ is ready to move, beam us back and we'll get out of here."

Ayala nodded. "Good luck."

Chakotay immediately started moving towards the central shaft and both Seven and Cathal followed close behind. The _Val Jean_ 's transporters were down in Engineering in an alcove near the entrance into the cargo bay. When they arrived, Mariah Henley was awaiting them at the controls. The cargo bay doors were still closed, the repressurization sequence not yet complete.

"Beam us over to the destroyer's bridge," Chakotay said stepping up onto the center pad. As it happened, there were three pads and so all of them just fit.

"There are eight Cardassians on the bridge all towards the back," Mariah replied. "I've locked onto coordinates towards the front of the bridge facing to the rear."

Chakotay nodded. "Keep a lock on us once we're over there. We might need to get back in a hurry."

Mariah smiled faintly and then activated the controls. There was a slight tingling sensation, as there always was during transport. Seven was never fond of the experience, but soon enough they materialized on the Cardassian bridge. All eight Cardassians were facing them, several with weapons raised, but one was holding up his hand as if to stop the others from acting too hastily.

"Explain yourselves," the Cardassian with the raised hand said immediately after the transport was complete.

Chakotay had both his hands open in front of him to show he had no weapons. Seven and Cathal were on either side. "Gul. I am Captain Chakotay of the Maquis vessel off your port stern and these are two of my officers. We beamed over because we were unable to raise you on communications."

"Our comm is out along with most everything else," the Cardassian Gul spat.

"We've detected several Jem'Hadar warriors who have beamed over to your vessel and came here to warn you in case your sensors are down too."

The Gul looked alarmed. He stepped forward towards them. He motioned to a map of the ship that was etched on a table before what must be the Gul's command chair. "Where are they?"

Seven stepped forward and examined the map. There were two depictions of the ship, one from the top and one from the side. On the top view, she motioned to a point near the stern of the vessel. "Here. There are thirty-six warriors assembling in this corridor. I suspect they will advance along this way." She indicated a path along the central corridor towards the bridge.

The Gul examined the map of his ship, and then pointed to a location near where the front wedge shaped bow of the vessel met the longer stern section. "We will go here and close the bulkhead at this point. That will prevent them from accessing the transporters or any of the other critical systems."

"Except engineering," Cathal commented.

"Indeed," the Gul responded. "That can't be helped for now. Once they're contained, we can deal with them on our own terms." He turned and faced the rest of the bridge staff. "Gavit. Pernel. You remain here and try to get sensors and communications back on-line. The rest of you, grab a weapon and follow me. That makes six of us."

"Nine of us," Chakotay said in response. He took a step forward.

The Gul regarded the three humans in front of him. "I fought the Maquis in several skirmishes."

"And so you must realize the benefit of having us as an ally."

The Gul nodded slowly and then turned to the Cardassian Glinn who had come up beside him. "Get these three weapons immediately." The Glinn nodded crisply and moved back to the rear of the bridge. Then to Chakotay and the others, "I am Gul Lemer. Your ally. Let's go."

They left the bridge out a door towards the back right. Chakotay, Seven and Cathal were each handed a weapon on the way out. It was heavy and bulky, but undoubtedly deadly. The exit lead into the central corridor along the length of the destroyer. You could not see down the entire length of the corridor, however, because every twenty meters or so the corridor angled down to a lower level. The bridge was on the highest level with engineering on the other end on the lowest level. They met up with several other Cardassians who were working on various systems and each joined the group going to the junction to face the Jem'Hadar warriors.

"Almost there," Gul Lemer said from the lead. There appeared to be one more downward slope before getting to the junction. As they started down, they suddenly heard the discharge of weapons. The fifteen or so moved towards the walls for cover. The weapons fire continued and Gul Lemer waived them all on. "Come on! We go now!"

At the bottom of the slope were several fallen Cardassians, and several others firing towards the rear of the ship using the fallen as cover. Beside what must be the bulkhead that Gul Lemer had originally mentioned were several Jem'Hadar warriors firing back with others coming in from behind them.

"Drive them back past the bulkhead!" Gul Lemer shouted. He advanced forward, seemingly oblivious to the weapons fire around him. Seven fired several volleys into the Jem'Hadar ranks, but had to stop when a half dozen Cardassians ran ahead. It was point blank range, and four of the Cardassians were shot and went down, but the other two broke through to the Jem'Hadar lines. In the chaos and confusion, the other Cardassians moved forward as well, firing indiscriminately into the fray. Seven was reluctant to fire and risk hitting one of the Cardassians. She held her weapon ready in case one of the Jem'Hadar broke free and moved into the corridor. She hunched closer to the floor as several energy bolts from Jem'Hadar lances passed overhead. Everything was happening so fast, and then suddenly the bulkhead door fell shut. Behind it were the remaining Jem'Hadar warriors, and a few of the Cardassians. Gul Lemer stood by the bulkhead controls.

"The Captain has been hit!" Cathal shouted from behind her.

Seven and Gul Lemer immediately moved over to where Chakotay had fallen. He lay unconscious and Cathal was leaning over him. There was an angry red stain and burn spot on his shirt over his heart. It was difficult to assess the extent of the damage. Seven felt her knees buckle.

"You must get him back to your sickbay," Gul Lemer stated. "I'm not sure our facilities are available. We will deal with the Jem'Hadar from here."

Cathal glanced about quickly. Other than Gul Lemer, there were only two other Cardassians left. "Seven, take care of him. I'm staying here to help the Cardassians."

Seven wasn't about to argue. Time was of the essence. She touched her comm badge. "Mariah. Emergency beam out for the Captain and myself. Directly to sickbay. Hurry!"

" _Prepare for transport_." Mariah replied, and again Seven felt the tingling sensation of transport. Instead of the _Val Jean_ 's sick-bay, however, she found herself in _Voyager_ 's sick-bay. Chakotay was on the floor in front of her and she was above him exactly as it had been in the destroyer's corridor. Tom Paris came over quickly with a medical tricorder.

"What happened," he asked.

"Jem'Hadar weapon," Seven responded. "Some sort of energy lance."

Tom was frowning. "It's more than I can handle," he muttered and then looked up. "Liam! Doctor!"

In a few moments Liam came over and Tom left to tend to someone else. Sickbay was crowded, but Seven hardly noticed. Liam looked at the readings on his own tricorder and then quickly placed it down. "He needs immediate surgery. Seven, do you have any medical training?"

Seven was a little in shock. As a Borg drone she had often assisted in the assimilation process. The replacement of limbs or the insertion of cybernetic devises. Nothing like this. She shook her head. "None."

"It doesn't matter," Liam replied as he carefully removed Chakotay's shirt. "You'll assist me. I'll tell you what to do."

The wound looked much worse than Seven thought it should. It was almost as if she could see into Chakotay's chest cavity, the skin was burned off. Liam was positioning a portable sterilizer over Chakotay. She wondered briefly why he just didn't move him to a biobed.

"Seven, grab that tray and bring it down here," Liam said. He had engaged the sterilizer and was obviously ready to start.

The tray was filled with various medical instruments. She could guess the function of some of them, but the function of others were completely unknown.

"Program the hypospray for 5 milligrams of axanol and 20 milligrams of metrazine."

Seven knew what a hypospray was and picked it up off the tray. She quickly programmed the doses and started to hand the hypospray to Liam. He appeared to be preparing the wound with something.

"Administer it to him in his neck," Liam said without looking up.

Seven had seen this done hundreds of times before, but hesitated. She didn't want to make a mistake. There was no time for second guessing, however, so she leaned forward and pressed the hypospray against Chakotay's neck. The hypospray hissed.

"Hand me the laser scalpel," Liam said and reached out his hand, again without looking up. "It's the long slender one with the clear tip."

Seven identified it immediately and handed it to Liam. She glanced over Liam's shoulder to see what he was doing more closely. It appeared as if he was removing more damaged tissue from around the open wound. Seven then realized she could see Chakotay's heart. The mass of tissue in the wound beat at a slow but regular rhythm. She then noticed Liam was holding the laser scalpel back toward her, so she took it and placed it back on the tray.

"I'm going to need you to use the dermal regenerator as I work with the microsucher. It's the two-pronged devise slightly larger than the laser scalpel."

Seven located the microsucher and handed it to Liam. She then picked up the dermal regenerator and moved into position next to him. "Just tell me what to do," she said.

It was painstaking work as they reconstructed the damaged ribs and skin surrounding and above the wound. After a while, Seven could anticipate Liam's instructions and the work proceeded smoothly. Fortunately, the burn caused by the Jem'Hadar weapon was truly only skin deep. Any deeper and it would have been fatal. When it was finally over Liam sighed heavily. "That should do it," he said. He turned off the sterilizer and picked it up. He was about to move off when Seven grabbed his arm to restrain him.

"Liam," she said. "What more can I do to help him?"

Liam smiled faintly at her and then looked back to Chakotay. "Oftentimes patients can still hear even though they are unconscious. Talk to him. Let him know you're here." He paused as he considered something further. As with Cathal earlier, Seven suddenly saw him through Chakotay's eyes from many years ago. From his memories. Who would have thought that gangly boy would grow up to become a doctor and a priest. "If you're so inclined, pray for him. I will pray for him." He placed his free hand on Seven's shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze before moving off.

For the first time Seven noticed the chaos in sickbay. Every biobed was taken, and many others who were also wounded were on the floor between biobeds as Chakotay was. She could see Ensign Kim on a nearby biobed being attended to by T'Vora. She must have beamed over from the _Val Jean_ as well to help. Off to one side were several bodies draped in cloth. Everyone was apparently too busy to move them to the ship's morgue. What had been happening during this past hour? Seven wondered. She had been so engrossed in Chakotay's surgery. What of Cathal and the Cardassians? Were the _Val Jean_ and _Voyager_ yet underway and clearing the area? It didn't seem to be as important as it should be. Seven returned her attention to Chakotay. She reached out and held his hand between hers. Talk to him, Liam had said. Let him know you're here. There was one thing she wanted to tell him. One thing she wanted him to know, now more than ever. She leaned in close so her lips were next to his ear.

"Chakotay. I love you."


	9. Transition

Chapter 9 – Transition

Chakotay was in pain. Every muscle felt as if it was being stretched and ripped. Every bone felt broken and his skin both burned and tingled. He was floating, as if weightless in space, but definitely not space. Something cold and sticky pressed on every square centimeter of his skin. He was in some sort of chamber and what light penetrated into the interior was sickly and muted. These things were all necessary. At least that is what they were telling him, or rather, what he was telling himself. It was excruciating, but worse than the physical pain were the incessant voices. He couldn't keep the voices out of his head…

And like turning a page, he was suddenly separated from this experience. A witness instead of a participant, detached and observing from the outside. And then he remembered. It was only a memory. The pain remained, but now more concentrated and localized in his chest. A dull ache, from where the Jem'Hadar weapon had hit him. He was waking up, but felt too comfortable for it to be soon after he was hit by the energy discharge. He felt certain he was healing in a biobed instead of crumpled in the corridor of a wounded Cardassian destroyer at the climax of the Battle of Cardassia.

"Chakotay, are you conscious?" Seven asked. Her voice was soothing, and from the sound of it, she was close by. There were no other sounds Chakotay could detect save for his breathing and hers.

"I guess I am," Chakotay croaked and tried to open his eyes. For a moment they wouldn't cooperate. It took longer than he thought should be necessary, and then he blinked several times to clear his vision. He glanced about and saw he was in his quarters on the _Val Jean_. Not a biobed after all, but rather his own bed. The room was warm and there were no covers. He glanced down at his inert frame and saw he was wearing loose fitting and casual clothes. Seven was standing over him at his bedside, her hair not tied up as it usually was but down onto her shoulders. The illumination of ceiling light behind her made her hair appear as a halo.

"You were injured in the fire fight. I had you transferred here from _Voyager_ 's sick-bay after the surgery," Seven stated, as way of explanation. "The space was needed and I could attend to you more easily here." There was a softness to her voice Chakotay had never noticed before. He now recognized some medical equipment beside the bed, a hydration device and other apparatus required to attend to someone unconscious.

"How long?" Chakotay asked and then started to try and sit up. His limbs felt heavy. Seven quickly leaned down and placed her hand on his chest, gently restrained him. After the minor effort, Chakotay wasn't sure he was ready to sit up just yet anyway. He relaxed, but Seven's hand persisted.

"You have been unconscious for seventy-nine hours," Seven replied, answering his question and after a pause finally withdrew her hand. "It's been four days since the battle. According to Liam, today is the Feast of the Holy Family. He is planning a celebration with some others down in the _Val Jean_ 's cargo bay and invited us if you were up." She turned to move a chair closer to the bed and then sat down facing him again.

Unconscious for four days! His injury must have been serious. Chakotay searched his memory. The Feast of the Holy Family? He tried to recall the stardate but couldn't quite remember. It was near the end of Earth's calendar year. "I must have slept through Christmas."

"Indeed," Seven observed, shuffling the chair a little closer. "The day before yesterday. A number of people remarked about it, claiming the day had snuck up on them."

"I suppose we've been preoccupied for the past several weeks," Chakotay mused.

Seven nodded. "You've celebrated before," she said, "with Liam and Cathal." In recent weeks it was more common for the two of them to recall these memories shared from their neural link. Mostly snippets or impressions, but sometimes more fully developed like Chakotay's dream from moments before. They had each become more comfortable discussing them with the other. "Is it a… holy day you still observe?"

Chakotay shook his head. "Not really. More so when I was a kid. With my mom's side. Not so much my dad." Chakotay frowned. "I can't believe I was out for so long."

"Liam advised me that this in not atypical after a surgery such as yours and the anesthesia you were given. In fact, it is a good sign. You are healing within the specified parameters, but we should take it slow. Liam warned that it may take up to an hour for you to be ready to get up after gaining consciousness. There is no hurry."

Chakotay nodded and again looked about the room. From the look of it, it seemed apparent that Seven must have been there with him these past four days. Attending to him, as she had said. On his desk there appeared to be a work area she had set up and he noticed an empty plate and the remains of a meal. A change of clothes were draped over the chair she was sitting in, and they were certainly not his.

Seven followed his gaze. "I've been conducting my work from your quarters," she said. "It seemed the most efficient thing to do."

"Thank you. For taking care of me," Chakotay said and reached out his hand.

Seven hesitated for just a second and then let his hand find hers. "Of course," she replied and gently squeezed his hand. "I should bring you up to date as to what has happened while you've been unconscious." Seven paused, appearing to arrange her thoughts. "The war is over. The Dominion and their allies have surrendered. Even now a treaty is being negotiated on Deep Space Nine."

"That's good to hear," Chakotay managed.

"Admiral Paris insisted the Maquis have a seat at the negotiations," Seven continued. "You were the obvious choice, but since you were injured and I insisted you recover at your own pace, Ayala was selected to represent us. He and Marina left for Deep Space Nine two days ago. Gul Lemer stands ready with a Cardassian ship to take you there as well if you desire."

Chakotay shook his head. He couldn't imagine feeling well enough to endure the proceedings. "Ayala will do just fine."

"My thought as well," Seven agreed. "In the interim, the remaining Maquis requested I command the _Val Jean_ until you recover your strength. We have remained with _Voyager_ and are continuing to assist in their repairs. There are many Federation vessels in the same predicament throughout the system. Unfortunately, the damage to _Voyager_ was more extensive than first thought and it might very well need to be towed back to drydock."

Chakotay nodded and then turned his head towards Seven with a smile. His crew, of course, had made an excellent choice with Ayala gone. "So I'll be taking orders from you then?" he quipped.

"Yes you will," Seven replied seriously. "Until you fully recover, which might take several days. I've put myself in charge of your recuperation."

That was just fine with Chakotay. The thought of spending more time with Seven pleased him. He was fully aware that she still held his hand in hers, and that simple fact was the best medicine he could ask for. He shifted a bit and cringed. His chest still hurt and was tender, but he was also beginning to feel uncomfortable, perhaps from being on his back and immobile for so long. "I think I'd like to try and sit up. Could you give me a hand?"

Seven frowned, but then released his hand, leaned forward and positioned an arm under his shoulders. Carefully, Chakotay shifted back and leaned up against the bulkhead behind his bed. Seven quickly positioned a pillow behind his back to make it more comfortable. "That's better," Chakotay said when finally in position. "So Gul Lemer was successful in retaking his ship?"

"Yes. Both he and Cathal were injured in the fighting, but they were repaired and Cathal is back on duty. Repairs to Gul Lemer's destroyer continue as well. They're in station keeping with us and _Voyager_ and the other Cardassian vessel. It is likely, however, he will soon be required to leave for Cardassia Prime to help with the recovery there."

Chakotay recalled how the Jem'Hadar had started bombarding Cardassian cities instigating the Cardassian fleet to switch sides. "What's the status of Cardassia Prime?"

"Devastation," Seven replied. "Forty-two percent of planet's habitable surface is damaged and will require restoration and over 800 million civilians were killed. The reports we're receiving of the conditions are horrific. Most of Gul Lemer's crew have already left to coordinate relief efforts."

Chakotay never had much love for the Cardassians, after all they did in the Demilitarized Zone, but hearing of their demise was like a physical blow. His thoughts switched to closer to home.

"What about the rest of the crew? The _Val Jean_ and _Voyager_?"

Seven hesitated. "Everyone from the _Val Jean_ survived," she began. "You and B'Elanna are still recovering."

"What happened to B'Elanna?"

"A plasma explosion during their fight with the Jem'Hadar on _Voyager_ ," Seven replied. She appeared hesitant to continue. "There were some fatalities on _Voyager_. Some others are still in critical condition…"

Chakotay shook his head. He realized Seven was trying to shield him from unpleasant news. There was undoubtedly much of it. Chakotay wanted to know, but at the same time didn't necessarily want Seven to have to tell him. "We don't need to go over the details now," he finally said.

Seven nodded and motioned back towards the desk. On the corner away from her work area was a PADD she was apparently gesturing to. "I've prepared a full report for you," she said. "Damage to the _Val Jean_ and _Voyager_. Casualties."

"I understand," Chakotay replied. "I'll take a look at it later."

"Most pressing are our orders from Admiral Paris," Seven continued. "I've deferred answering him until you were awake, but I think he's expecting a response on our status soon."

"What are his orders?"

"The _Val Jean_ is to be brought to Utopia Planitia immediately when we're finished here," Seven answered. "And you and I are to report to the Admiral when we arrive."

Just like that. It seemed too soon to put the _Val Jean_ back in storage above Mars. Naively he had thought their mission would last longer, but of course nothing lasts forever. With the war now over, he couldn't expect to keep his own personal vessel tenuously connected to Star Fleet Intelligence.

"I suspect many on the crew are also considering their options for the inevitable decommissioning of the _Val Jean_ ," Seven continued. "Liam has confided in me his desire to go to Vulcan and help the Pax refugees. I think Cathal desires the same. T'Vora is arranging a transport for them, and although she hasn't come out and said anything, I suspect that she and Suvik are planning to return to Vulcan as well. There has been a great deal of communication between her and the Vulcan Science Academy."

That was to be expected. In fact, it was likely everyone had plans. The family, as it were, going their separate ways. And what of those on _Voyager_? They hadn't had much time to think after returning from the Delta Quadrant and landing in the middle of the war. "And the others?" Chakotay asked.

Seven shrugged. "I believe they are all waiting to speak with you directly. I can only guess. I did authorize for Gerron to accompany Ayala and Marina to Deep Space Nine so he could visit his family on Bajor. I suspect he will want to stay indefinitely."

"What of you? What are your plans?" Her answer suddenly became very important to Chakotay. He realized that his answer to a similar question might very well depend on hers. When did his feelings for her so radically change?

Seven appeared annoyed and bemused. "I would think that is obvious," she finally said. She stood up and motioned towards Chakotay's legs. "Okay, time to get up."

"I thought we were taking this slow," Chakotay said with a grin.

"We are," Seven replied. "We're not going to play hoverball or anything, just a few steps about the room." She motioned again for him to swing his legs out over the edge of the bed.

Chakotay did as he was told and started to rise. Immediately Seven leaned forward and helped him stand. He wobbled for a second, but then straightened. Seven kept her arm about his waist and he held onto her shoulder as he took a few tentative steps about his quarters. "Maybe we'll be playing hoverball before you know it," Chakotay remarked. Perhaps it was only his imagination, but he felt better with each step.

"I'll be sure to go easy on you," Seven replied.

"Oh no," Chakotay retorted. "When we do play, I expect you to play to win." He suspected he would have a difficult time beating Seven on the hoverball court, but if he were to win, he wanted to know that he did it fairly.

"Of course."

They completed a circle about the quarters. "Let's head down to the cargo bay," Chakotay suggested. "I'd like to see everyone."

Seven didn't reply, but instead guided him towards the door of his quarters and out into the corridor. As they approached the central shaft, Seven touched her comm badge. "Computer, decrease gravity in central shaft to one tenth Earth standard." She turned to Chakotay and added, "It will be easier for you."

Chakotay smiled and leaned over to grab the ladder leading down to the lower decks. The lower gravity was immediately apparent. "I didn't know that was possible."

"I've been making some tweaks to ship's systems these past few days," Seven explained. "For something to do while you were lying unconscious."

A pity the _Val Jean_ was going to be decommissioned.

They arrived just as the group in the cargo bay were beginning to move to an array of food and drink that were set up on some tables. Chell was uncovering the various dishes. On the far end of the cargo bay were lines of chairs facing a raised platform. Chakotay realized it must be a makeshift altar and that Liam's celebration for this feast day included a Mass according to his faith. In fact, Liam was stepping off the platform and was dressed in a cassock rather than his Maquis uniform. He was the first to spot him and Seven in the entryway.

"Captain," Liam said with a wide grin. "You're up and about."

Chakotay raised his free hand. "Not ready for hoverball quite yet, but I'm working on it."

Liam picked through those gathered, came up to both Chakotay and Seven and gave them a hug. "And Seven emerges as well," he said stepping back. "This is wonderful. Come join us, we were just about to eat."

The rest of those gathered abandoned the meal, much to Chell's chagrin, and moved instead to also greet Chakotay and Seven.

"You're looking well Chakotay," Kathryn remarked. Chakotay hadn't noticed her before in the group. He knew Kathryn was not spiritual, but she must have attended the Mass out of interest and comradery. In fact, during their time in the Delta Quadrant he learned that the _Voyager_ and _Val Jean_ crews were varied and eclectic in their secular and spiritual beliefs. In all likelihood most everyone here had different faiths. "Seven's been taking good care of you I see," Kathryn added with a smile.

Chakotay nodded. "Of course." He recognized others from _Voyager_ in addition to Kathryn. He was surprised to see Gul Lemer amongst those gathered along with another Cardassian. Cathal, T'Vora, Suvik, and many others from the _Val Jean_ were also there.

"You just missed an interesting discussion Captain," Gul Lemer began. He gestured to Liam, "Your officer demonstrated various rituals and ceremonies, and there were several readings from a spiritual text, and he then enlightening us as to the meaning of family."

"Oh?"

Liam grinned. "My homily Chakotay," he explained. "It is the Feast of the Holy Family after all."

"Yes, I was told," Chakotay replied. He was going to add by whom, but realized it must be obvious. He and Seven were still standing in the entryway arm in arm, primarily so Seven could help support him, but it could be misinterpreted as something more. The others, however, seemed unfazed by their embrace of sorts. And might it be something more?

"A fascinating notion," Gul Lemer continued, looking back to Liam. "According to your arguments, in a sense, we are all family. A family of this God of yours."

"That was one message Liam was promulgating," T'Vora interjected. "The primary message I took from his presentation was the central importance of family to society as a whole." She then gestured to her husband Suvik. "Particularly the significance of its fundamental unit, the life-giving bond of a couple and their willingness to accept their responsibilities to each other and their children."

T'Vora emphasized that last word and there appeared to be some unspoken meaning behind it. Chakotay knew T'Vora and Suvik had no children, but perhaps this was a not so subtle hint. In response, Suvik raised the first two fingers of his right hand in a Vulcan sign of affection. T'Vora touched her fingers to his, and if Chakotay didn't know better, might even say T'Vora smiled slightly.

"The principal cell or building block of Galactic society," Gul Lemer remarked. "I believe those are the words he used."

"Exactly," Liam confirmed. "The family is central. All too often in the past the freedom and rights of the individual were emphasized, and the fact that the individual was a member of a family was forgotten."

"Family is important," Gul Lemer mused in a quieter tone, and it occurred to Chakotay that the fate of Lemer's family might still be uncertain given the destruction on Cardassia Prime. What must he be feeling?

"Family," Kathryn said, stepping into the middle of the group and gesturing to include everybody. "You're all right. Liam's sermon brought some things into focus for me. During our time in the Delta Quadrant, I came to think of _Voyager_ as a family. And we are family. But what does that mean? I think what Liam said cuts to the core of the matter and is true. The meaning of family would be lost if not for the example of its basic unit, a mother and a father and their mutual love for each other and their child. But the power of family is in the extension of those bonds out to include others. It is that extension that strengthens our society and civilization. Mothers and fathers. Sons and daughters. Husbands and wives. Sisters and brothers. Adoptive parents and children, mentors, teachers, friends. The bonds of family." Kathryn placed her hands on both Chakotay and Seven's shoulders. "We are family on _Voyager_ , on the _Val Jean_ , but it doesn't end there. Our extended family continues to evolve and grow." As she said these last words, she again gestured to the entire group, her arms outstretched. Several of those gathered nodded their heads and there appeared to be general agreement with Kathryn's sentiment.

"Above all, we should not tolerate anything that undermines or diminishes the bonds and importance of family," Liam added. "Ultimately, it is the fabric that holds us all together."

"Well then," Gul Lemer said and turned back towards the food tables. "A family must eat."

"Hear hear," Chell affirmed, sounding relieved that the conversation had finally turned back to include the meal he had prepared.

Everyone started to follow Gul Lemer's lead. Chakotay, however, was reluctant to move. He was quite comfortable standing there arm in arm with Seven, and for her part, Seven also didn't make a move to follow the rest. Chakotay turned to look at Seven. "So what do you think?" He wasn't exactly sure what question he was asking specifically. Was he asking what she thought about getting some food? Or what she thought about the things Kathryn and Liam had just said about family? If he was being honest with himself, however, the one question forming in his mind revolved around the prospect of the two of them… Could she be feeling the same way about him as he felt about her? The two of them had known each other for almost two years now, but hadn't really _known_ each other until quite recently.

Seven didn't answer, although she did wear a slight smile very similar to Chakotay's impression of T'Vora's earlier. Was it his imagination, or was Seven holding him a little tighter than before? Chakotay smiled back. Things were getting very interesting indeed.


	10. Star Fleet Research

Chapter 10 – Star Fleet Research

" _Admiral. Captain Chakotay and Seven of Nine are here to see you_."

"Send them in," Owen replied and stood. That was quick, but he was expecting them and ready. The _Val Jean_ had arrived at the Utopia Planita shipyards less than an hour before. In fact, he could see the vessel from his office in this new division of Star Fleet Research. The windows in his workplace also offered a breathtaking view of Mars and he moved over to stand near them. The oxidized plains below stretched out to the edge of the visible planet, and the great chasm of Valles Marineris was coming into view on the eastern edge.

"Admiral," Chakotay said entering the office. "This is quite a place you have here. Congratulations on your new position." Seven of Nine followed closely behind and nodded in greeting.

Owen extended his hand and shook both their hands vigorously. "Thank you Captain. I hope we do good things here." He then motioned towards his desk and the three of them moved over. "Good work in the Demilitarized Zone and in the final battle," Owen added as he picked up a phaser sitting on the edge of his desk. "I'm happy you're all back safe." He handed the phaser to Chakotay.

"What's this?" Chakotay asked.

"I want to show you something," Owen responded.

Chakotay examined the phaser. There was nothing special about it and so Chakotay first showed it to Seven and then looked back at Admiral Paris with a questioning look. "I don't get it."

"It's not the phaser," Owen said and stepped back a few paces. "Fire it at me."

"Admiral?"

"Don't worry. Just fire the phaser and watch what happens."

Chakotay aimed the phaser at Admiral Paris' chest and pulled the trigger. Immediately, a force field materialized ten centimeters from Owen's body to block the phaser blast. A hexagonal portion of the field glowed faintly with dissipated energy. Chakotay stopped firing after a second.

Owen smiled and stepped forward to take the phaser back from Chakotay. "A little something we've recently developed using the Borg technology recovered from _Voyager_ ," Owen explained. "A personal force field generated by my modified comm badge." Owen took off the badge and showed it to both of them. In outward appearance, it was nearly identical to a regular badge.

"How do you dissipate the energy?" Seven asked, obviously intrigued.

Owen chuckled. "Very good. We're still working on that," he replied. "This prototype only works with a phaser on stun. Even then, after ten seconds, the unit will overheat."

"The Borg dump the energy directly into subspace," Seven stated.

"A little too dangerous for our tastes," Owen replied. "We're investigating alternatives now." He placed the phaser down and picked up a PADD, handing it to Seven. He motioned for Chakotay to take a look as well. "Recognize this?"

Seven studied the PADD for a moment. "It appears to be photon torpedo modified to hold a significant gravimetric charge."

"I recognize it," Chakotay added. "These are the same modifications we made to increase the weapon's yield to eighty isotons in order to destroy Omega."

Owen smiled. "So you know about Omega?" He knew all about the incident in the Delta Quadrant from the classified report. Strictly speaking, both Chakotay and Seven should know nothing about the Omega molecule.

Seven and Chakotay exchanged a quick look.

"A gravimetric photon torpedo," Owen expanded, choosing to ignore the fact that Chakotay and Seven obviously did know about Omega. That discussion could wait for another day. "Again, we're developing a prototype by exploiting some innovations we've gleaned from the _Voyager_ logs."

"Admiral…"

Owen raised his hand. "There's one more thing I want to show you both," he said and moved behind his desk to the computer. He entered in some quick commands, the file he required was already queued up. The office window opaqued slightly to reduce the glare, and a plot was projected on the office view screen on the opposite wall. It showed two plots, a quantum slipstream phase variance magnitude on top of a reduced quantum matrix threshold, both as a function of time. Owen could see that Seven recognized it at once. Three positions during the approximately twenty-seven minute plot were highlighted. "At the three instances marked, a very slight modification to the quantum matrix was applied shortly after the major correction transmitted by the shuttlecraft back to _Voyager_ was executed. We've determined by examining the telemetry of _Voyager_ 's flight through slipstream that these modifications were essential to the success of the slipstream's integrity." He looked back and forth between Chakotay and Seven. "Without them, it is likely _Voyager_ would have been thrown from the quantum slipstream, possibly being destroyed in the process." He paused a moment for emphasis and then turned to Seven. "Do you recognize these adjustments Seven?"

Seven nodded. "I do. At the time, I did not think them relevant, but I performed the adjustments anyway."

"They were apparently very relevant," Owen said and switched off the display. "These adjustments were tracked back to your station on the bridge and it's possible the two of you wouldn't be here without them."

"Why are you showing us this Admiral?" Seven asked.

Owen nodded slowly and stepped back out from behind his desk. This was it. The preliminaries were over and he was ready to make his pitch. "I have a proposition," he finally said. "I know the two of you come as a package deal. I think both of you, your experience and expertise, could best be utilized here at Star Fleet Research. We're working on a number of other initiatives in addition to the quantum slipstream, personal force field and gravimetric photon torpedo; ablative armor, improvements to the existing multiphasic shields, transphasic torpedoes, on-demand site-to-site transport, enhanced quasimorphic phasers."

Again Chakotay and Seven exchanged a quick look. To Owen, by what he could observe from their body language, they appeared to have grown even closer in the six weeks since their first meeting. That might work to his advantage.

"What are you suggesting?" Chakotay asked, curiosity in his voice. Owen smiled. They were intrigued. That was what he was waiting for and he pressed forward with the details of his proposal.

"That you rejoin Star Fleet, accept a promotion to Captain, and become my deputy here at Utopia Planita. Our mission is advanced defensive and offensive capabilities for the next generation of Star Fleet vessels, and we plan to exploit as much as we can from _Voyager_ 's experience in the Delta Quadrant." He then turned to Seven. "I've pushed through Star Fleet Command a field commission and promotion for you as well to Lieutenant Commander, if you're willing. You would be the division's Science Advisor and Subject Matter Expert." Seven turned to Chakotay with a raised eyebrow. "The two of you would work hand in hand here on Mars," Owen added and moved towards the door. "As for the _Val Jean_ , I intend to use it as a test bed for the work we're doing here, particularly with respect to the quantum slipstream drive. I'll step out now for a moment so you can discuss my proposal in private." Owen felt confident he had them and smiled as the door shut behind him. His aide stood when he entered his outer office. She was the same aide he had at his previous posting at Star Fleet Intelligence. The two of them, in fact, had only arrived on Mars a few days before. His orders to take command of the division only being approved the day after the Battle of Cardassia.

"That was fast admiral," she commented. "How do you think it went?"

Owen gave his aide a wink. "I think we got them Talia."

She smiled back and then stepped forward to present the Admiral a PADD. "Regarding the arrangements for this weekend," Talia said. "I tracked down a recipe for blood pie and both of Miss Torres' parents have accepted your invitation."

"There won't be a problem?" Owen asked. "We can still make arrangements for separate events."

Talia shook her head. "I've spoken to both of them, and they seem agreeable to your current plans."

Owen clasped his hands together. "Excellent," he said. Everything was coming together. He had a long talk with Tom the other day and suspected he was planning to propose to B'Elanna. It was only a matter of time. If Miss Torres was going to be family, Owen wanted to meet her and the future in-laws and start things out right.

"Did you discuss with Captain Chakotay the plans regarding your son?"

Owen winced in frustration. "I forgot to mention that," he replied and glanced quickly back at the closed door. His hope was for Tom and B'Elanna to be stationed here at Utopia Planita as well. The division would need an experienced pilot, and he couldn't think of anyone more qualified. As for Miss Torres, with all her experience in the Delta Quadrant, she would obviously be a valuable asset as well. Instead of asking them himself, however, Owen was hoping to get Captain Chakotay and Seven of Nine to ask. It was likely they would have more influence than himself. He also forgot to mention his ongoing negotiations with the Vulcan Science Academy. He was arranging for Chakotay's officer T'Vora and her husband to come to Utopia Planitia on loan. In fact, T'Vora had already expressed interest in the possibility. Owen hesitated a moment, then moved back to the office. He opened the door and was about to speak when he noticed that Chakotay and Seven of Nine hadn't seen him enter and were in a close embrace. The two of them were oblivious to his presence. If Owen didn't know better, it appeared almost as if they were sharing their first kiss, both tender and urgent. He slid back out without disturbing them, the request concerning Tom and B'Elanna could wait.

Owen grinned. He was now fairly certain they would accept his offer.

#

Author's note: orionastro asked for Trek tech, so I tried to bring some of that into this chapter and tie back to the beginning of the story as well, and of course complete the C/7 story arch in this AU. Just one more very short chapter to go that will serve as an epilogue. Thanks to those who've left reviews, followed, and favorited.


	11. Epilogue

Chapter 11 – Epilogue

Chakotay and Seven were standing side by side overlooking the parade field at Starfleet Academy. They were both in dress uniforms and before them the cadet wing stood at attention. On either side were the rest of the Academy's faculty. The two of them were taking a semester sabbatical from Star Fleet Research to teach courses to these future officers. Admiral Arbin, the recently appointed Bolian superintendent, was off to their right before the cadet wing. "At ease!" he called out.

The cadet wing relaxed and the faculty resumed their seats in the stands. Seven noticed that Chakotay hesitated for a second, but then sat down next to her. It was a formal parade and Seven adjusted the seldom used Star Fleet hat she was wearing. It was both unfamiliar and uncomfortable.

"Do you have a tricorder?" Chakotay asked.

Seven gave Chakotay a look of irritation, and then answered, "Are you kidding?"

Admiral Arbin was now addressing the cadet wing. Chakotay chuckled and then turned back to Seven. "I'm sorry, I'm not certain why I asked you that. A strange feeling came over me."

Seven frowned. Her husband could be eccentric at times, although she supposed that was true for everyone.

Her husband… Seven liked the sound of that. The past two years had been eventful and wonderful. They were married soon after accepting the positions at Utopia Planitia and Star Fleet Research. Admiral Paris had conducted the ceremony and all their friends from _Voyager_ and the _Val Jean_ had been there. And then a year later, Ixchel was born. What a glorious surprise. It had been a difficult pregnancy and delivery due to her Borg implants, but Chakotay was by her side the whole time. Their daughter was now just over a year old. She hated to leave her to attend this parade, but B'Elanna had offered to look after her along with her own daughter Miral.

Seven leaned closer to Chakotay. "Have we been here long enough?" she asked in a whisper.

Chakotay smiled mischievously. Seven knew he wasn't fond of these parades either. "What are you suggesting?"

Seven shrugged. "We do have a one year old, after all. People would understand." At Star Fleet Research, they could bring their daughter with them almost anywhere. The work environment was very family friendly. Here at the Academy, however, the rules were somewhat different.

Chakotay seemed to consider this for a moment and then touched his comm badge. "Emergency beam out of Commander Hansen and myself to our apartment."

Immediately the field at Starfleet Academy faded and the two of them appeared in their apartment near the Academy in San Francisco. Seven liked it when Chakotay was decisive. The prototype on-demand site-to-site transporter they were testing worked flawlessly. Yet another piece of advanced technology being developed in Admiral Paris' research division. She moved over to the apartment's computer. "I'll call B'Elanna and have her bring over Ixchel."

"The weather looks nice. Are we still going to that picnic this evening?" Chakotay asked moving towards the bedroom, most likely to change out of his dress uniform.

"Of course," Seven replied. "The Admiral is here on Earth and has been looking forward to it." Admiral Paris had sort of adopted them both into the Paris family. They were planning to meet near the old lighthouse on the Marin Headlands in Golden Gate Park. Tom, B'Elanna, and Miral would also be there, and possibly B'Elanna's parents who were due to arrive on Earth soon. B'Elanna had confided to Seven recently her surprise that her parents were back together again after such a long separation. It was nice that her friend was able to reconcile with her parents, something unavailable to Seven. As she entered B'Elanna's number, Seven smiled to herself. She quite enjoyed the company of B'Elanna's parents, particularly her mother who was often lively and unpredictable.

After making the call, Seven stepped into the bedroom to change into something more comfortable as well. The weather outside was indeed warm, so she decided on one of her new sun dresses acquired for their stay on Earth. Chakotay was already finished changing when the door chime sounded. B'Elanna and Tom were also renting an apartment close by. "I'll get it," he said.

When Seven emerged, Chakotay was walking back from the door, Ixchel asleep in his arms. "B'Elanna had to go quickly so couldn't say hi," he said. "She's picking up her parents at the space port and will meet us at the park later." Seven stepped up and cradled Ixchel's head in her hand. Her daughter's thin wispy brown hair was beginning to fill out and tumbled out of the blanket. She never fully appreciated the bond between a mother and her child until experiencing it herself. She looked up to Chakotay who was looking back at her lovingly. The three of them were a family. How amazing and sometimes overwhelming and always wonderful that was.

 _Her_ family.

#

THE END

Author's note: That's that. Hope you enjoyed. Please leave a review and let me know what you think.

For those who read my story "The Folly of the Stewards", you might recognize the beginning of this chapter as something similar as to what happened to the Chakotay from that universe as he was moved about into different AUs. One of those AUs was what spawned "Legacy" and another this story (two others were scifiromance's "The Girl Next Door" and The Cheshire Cheese's "Sleepwalking" – two stories I need to get caught up on!).

At some point I'll pick one of the AUs from "Possibilities" for my next C/7 story. You can still vote which AU that might be by leaving a review for that story too... ;)

TTFN, cojack


End file.
